Warriors: Light and Dark
by Jade-of-the-Stone
Summary: StoneClan has become a reality. Alliances between groups have been established. Everything seems to be going Echopaw's way... Until a new darkness enshrouds the Twolegplace seeking revenge! Now, riddled by visions from the Tenkai twins, Echopaw must overcome the new dangers set in front of him. The second thrilling book in the exciting tale of the Warriors: Destiny series.
1. Prologue

Darkness enshrouded the sky, not a star to be seen. The forest below was covered in a mist so thick, nothing could be seen from above. The trees rose like thistles from the ground, not a leaf on a single branch, and as gray and dull as a cloudy day. The ground was horrid and mucky, and just as mucky was the river that flowed slower than a snail. The cries of agonized cats traveled throughout the forest every minute, and not a single piece of prey was to be found. This was the prison for cats who have done evil in their lives. This was the Place of No Stars.

In a clearing, two toms walked next to one another, one black and one a dark gray. They trotted until they reached the middle of the clearing and sat down, licking the dirt and muck off their paws.

The black tom shook off the dirt on his pelt and hissed, "I hope you know what the risk is doing this Thistleclaw. If we get caught by those StarClan mouse-brains, who knows what they'll do to us."

Thistleclaw gazed around the clearing, looking into the shadows of the trees. "Trust me Darkstripe. This cat is more powerful and commanding than both of us put together." He glimpsed at Darkstripe. "I believe he has the power to give us another chance to return to the living."

Darkstripe leaned his head closer. "Yeah right. Don't you remember? StarClan forbid us from ever crossing over. How can this 'powerful and commanding' tom get past that rule?"

Thistleclaw focused hard on the wall of trees. "He has gathered cats. Cats that have given their souls to following him. By giving him their souls, they forfeited their willpower. With that, we can control the cats without actually crossing over."

"I don't get it." Darkstripe scratched his head. "How'd he do it?"

"Simple... By taking all the cats who have had their hearts ripped out of them by lost loves, death, and other tortuous events, sympathizing with them, and promising them power beyond imagination." Thistleclaw laughed. "I guess you could call them 'Broken Hearts.'"

Darkstripe purred. "Ooh, sounds deceptive." He stopped, then slouched. "But wait, what do you mean by he 'sympathized' with them?"

"Darkstripe, this cat was born of greed, envy, and hatred. He has gone through, time after time, the pain of love. His ambition succeeds all expectations and his grip on the twolegplace spans more than any other group." Thistleclaw finally saw the figure, approaching them from the west in a bog of haze. "He shall aid us in our efforts to destroy the clans."

The figure from the haze revealed himself to be a light gray tom, encased in a mysterious shade. His eyes burned a fierce red, and his pelt was ruffled and messy. He sluggishly padded toward Thistleclaw and Darkstripe with a devilish smile on his face. "Ah, my allies. There has been a little change in plans."

Thistleclaw growled. "What?! But you said-"

"And I keep that promise. However," The tom stopped and sat, narrowing his eyes toward the ground. "It has come to my attention that a new threat has revealed themselves. A tom that goes by the name of Echopaw."

"So?" Darkstripe gritted his teeth. "Who cares about some fantasizing fake warrior?"

"He's not fake. He's all too real." The tom twitched his whiskers. "And you should know him. He's the one you let escape from you claws a little under a moon ago."

Thistleclaw froze, and so did Darkstripe. Darkstripe was the one to reply first. "That dirty fox-dung cat!?"

"So the rumors spreading were true." Thistleclaw leaned forward. "The clans have once again taken in an outsider to be a warrior."

"Indeed, and they are calling themselves StoneClan."

Thistleclaw leaned back. "But he can't become a warrior without training from another warrior. So how-"

"He has been given warriors of ThunderClan to train him." The tom sneered.

Darkstripe smirked maliciously. He was starting to catch onto the new plan. "Which ones?"

"As far as I know, two of the special threesome that defeated you long ago, another normal warrior, and..." The tom started to shake. "That mouse-dung of a cat Squirrelflight!"

Darkstripe chuckled. "Two of the special three are there? Ooh, I can't wait to get my revenge."

Thistleclaw asked, "So the new plan is to destroy this new clan?"

"Not only destroy them..." The tom continued to shudder. "But make sure they hurt. I'll kill one of their own, and in their misery, we will attack them at their weakest, and sever their numbers to zero."

Thistleclaw nodded. "And we will be able to control your commanders without worry of resistance?"

The tom stopped and stared at Thistleclaw. "Yes."

Eyes of cats surrounded the clearing beyond the trees. They all gazed at the tom, who started to laugh. "Heh, heh, heh! Let the age of Broken Hearts reign!"

Thistleclaw, Darkstripe, and all the Dark Forest cats yowled.

"Let the age of Broken Hearts reign!"


	2. Chapter 1

"Echopaw! We're back!"

The trees were barren, branches exposed in the cloudy sunlight. The sky was white, calling for snow, yet none has come down. The crisp air had turned cold, and the heavy breeze a gentle wind. The river started to freeze in the mornings, but still yearns a subtle stream. The morning was the most relieving. The nights were cold and cats ran for shelter in the evenings.

It had been a week since that fateful day. The camp has become more lively than ever. Prey had become harder to find, but StoneClan had a well stocked supply. The prison cats, now referred to as the Guests, were getting used to the warrior life, but they still could not grip the sense of the clan code. More specifically, the fresh-kill rule. Elders, queens, and kits first. However, they caught their own food and never really relied on the fresh-kill pile. Harlem, probably the wisest of the Guests, was able to grasp the rule, but the other she-cats and hyperactive kits couldn't.

Darkpaw and Splashpaw were getting used to clan life, though. Darkpaw had Dovewing as a mentor now, and he listened to instructions very well. It's like he was made to be a warrior. He already was able to catch a squirrel on his own a few days ago. Splashpaw was very distractible. She could focus on her lessons in fighting and hunting, but only if there was nothing else to talk about. The switch to where Squirrelflight was her mentor now didn't help that along.

The switch... Dawnpaw had become an apprentice of Cinderheart, enhancing her attained skills in healing and spiritual connections even further. Echopaw was happy that she wasn't disappointed that she wasn't going to be a warrior. Dawnpaw was surprisingly eager to learn from Cinderheart and hear about her strange past. Seemed that Cinderheart had once had another warrior spirit inside of her, a medicine cat spirit. Even though the spirit was gone, there were still memories of herbs in her mind that would help here.

Crowpelt was always with Gingerpaw. Yes, Crowpelt. Echopaw had persuaded Lionblaze to unofficially give Crowpelt his warrior name. Crowpelt knew he wasn't a warrior, just felt better to have a better name than 'paw. Gingerpaw was sad for the first few days, caring for his legs in an empty hope, but when she finally got over it, she cared for Crowpelt as much as possible. Gingerpaw was okay with not having a mentor yet, arguing that she was too old to become a warrior.

Echopaw was getting close to completing his basic training and was starting to learn battletactics. Lionblaze was a very smart fighter. The techniques he showed Echopaw at first looked impossible, but Echopaw tried his best to learn quickly. The days passed so quickly that he was beginning to think that he would forget about the Tenkai Twins.

But he didn't.

The mysteries shrouded in Echopaw's mind were overwhelming. He pursued the fact that he would meet the twins the next time they left the camp. That was the plan, and enacting it would soon come. Dovewing, using her unique and still strange powers, was able to find the place Okani had described to her. It was in the eastern forest at the foot of the mountains. Dovewing was able to describe the basic idea of where they were, but said that something abnormal was causing her vision to blur when she got any closer. Echopaw could believe it if the twins are as special as they say they are.

One thing that has also been bothering Echopaw was the amount of loner scents he's been smelling on the edge of StoneClan's territory. The numbers have been increasing steadily, and they are starting to become familiar to him. The Broken Hearts. Hopefully, it was nothing, but it's never nothing. They probably were searching for them. Echopaw could understand that. After what happened in the sewers, they probably have a strong vendetta against StoneClan.

"Echopaw? What are you looking at?" Dawnpaw and Cinderheart had returned from the forest searching for herbs.

Echopaw snapped out of it. He had been staring at the entrance to the camp, hoping for the morning patrol to get back, so he could start training again with Lionblaze. "Oh, it's nothing Dawnpaw. Just thinking about leaf-bare."

Cinderheart looked at the sky. "It is strange. We're plenty into leaf-bare already, but there's been no sign of snow yet. I don't know if that's a good thing."

Dawnpaw smiled. "You know, this will be my first leaf-bare."

Echopaw smirked. "Mine too. Well, if you don't count that my first day I was born I saw snow."

"Lucky. I haven't seen snow." Dawnpaw twitched her whiskers and walked away.

Cinderheart caught up with Dawnpaw. "Do you want to hear what it's like?"

While they padded into the medicine den, Echopaw turned his focus onto the Guests. Reilly and Shila were playing in the frozen stream, cheering up each other by chasing the dead leaves they let float on it. Ariel and Gina were out hunting, but their den was never empty. The she-cat that never revealed her name always slept in the corner, curled up in a ball and whispering something no one could make out, not even Dovewing. Echopaw couldn't understand why she couldn't share anything with him, but decided that she can introduce herself when she was ready. Harlem was in his usual spot: a small hill on the edge of camp, sleeping while sitting up. He was an old tom, a definite elder if he was a clan cat. Harlem, again, was the wisest and the nicest probably. He never disagreed to a conversation with the ThunderClan warriors.

Echopaw turned to the elders' den, which Crowpaw was coming out of with Gingerpaw to get his breakfast from the fresh-kill pile. He got interested into their conversations more. Crowpelt had become more open to tell the tale of Ravenpaw's life. Echopaw understood why Crowpelt got upset before they fought with the loners the first time. Barley, Ravenpaw's only friend and Crowpelt's caretaker, had been killed by a dark cat many moons ago, and after his death, Ravenpaw had died in his grief, leaving Crowpelt and his mother, Violet, to live on the farm. Violet was a new cat taken in by the twolegs on the farm, and Ravenpaw had mated with her very quickly for her eagerness and willingness to learn about the clans. After Ravenpaw died, Violet left moons later after Crowpelt was able to take care of himself on the farm. No wonder Crowpelt was angry. That dark cat was the one that had taken away Barley and both his parents.

"Hey, Echopaw! Crowpelt wants to ask you something." Gingerpaw called.

"Okay. What about?"

Crowpelt meowed. "Oh, it's nothing. I didn't really want to ask." He looked away.

Gingerpaw brushed against Crowpelt. "Please? For me?"

He looked back at her. "Okay... My legs have been feeling a bit better, and I've been wanting to try to hunt again, so can me and Gingerpaw try to go catch some mice?"

Echopaw glanced at the two. They sounded like they really wanted to catch prey again. "Well..." They haven't really had any trouble in the forest. "Okay, but wait for the patrol to get back. You need another apprentice or warrior to go with you."

"Thank you." Crowpelt took a mouse off the pile and walked back to his den with Gingerpaw.

Echopaw gazed around the camp. Everything was peaceful, something he had not had in a long time. To think it was less than a moon ago that he became a clan cat in StarClan. Less than a moon ago he was lost, broken, alone. Now, he had a clan to take care of, and friends that had his back through any tribulation. StoneClan. The ones who stand firm against anything.

The patrol returned shortly after Echopaw had talked with Crowpelt. The morning patrol was Splashpaw, Darkpaw, Lionblaze, and Dovewing. They mentioned that Squirrelflight had probably went hunting a bit before they woke up.

Again, reports of loner scents were encircling their territory, like they knew StoneClan was in the forest, but were afraid to try to come in. They should be scared. If they had heard about their recent victory in the sewers, they should avoid any confrontation with us.

However, it doesn't seem like it's that way. The scents they smelled were purposely put there. Echopaw didn't know if StoneClan was intimidating them, or it was the other way around.

"Echopaw, let's get your training started." Lionblaze meowed.

"Just a second." Echopaw looked at the other returning cats. "Darkpaw, can you take Crowpelt and Gingerpaw out to try to hunt?"

Darkpaw nodded and trotted to the elders' den.

Dovewing smiled. "It's good to see Crowpelt is so energetic again." She looked at Lionblaze. "This place already feels like home. Kits and elders having talks and playing in the camp while the warriors train the apprentices or go out hunting."

"Getting a little homesick are we?" Cinderpelt appeared from the medicine den. "I miss ThunderClan too."

Lionblaze purred. "But it's more exciting here. Nothing was happening in ThunderClan when we left. Each clan respected their borders and prey was plentiful. Don't you ever want more of the thrill and danger?"

Dovewing rolled her eyes. "I got plenty of that in the battle against the Dark Forest."

"Dark Forest?" Echopaw became interested. "You mean they came into the living and fought with you?"

Lionblaze flicked his tail. "About 6 moons ago, a destined battle broke out between StarClan and the Dark Forest. We were caught in the crossfire. The Dark Forest was out to destroy the clans from the inside by training clan cats in their sleep. They almost succeeded. But the clans stood strong, snuffed out the traitors, and expelled them. Me, Dovewing, Jayfeather, and Firestar were the chosen ones to defeat the Dark Forest and banish them back to where they came from."

"Wow." Echopaw was awed. Such an exciting story. He had to hear more. Then, he noticed something. Firestar was the cat he met in StarClan. The fiery tom that stood high above all the others. "So Firestar was a legendary cat, wasn't he?"

"Ha! Legendary doesn't start to describe him." Squirrelflight appeared entering the camp. "Firestar was my father, so I should know. He came as a kittypet into the clans. He fought and beat Longtail in a fight and won his right to be a warrior. Firestar killed the first Scourge and became the leader of ThunderClan for many moons to come."

Echopaw came into the clans as a loner. Echopaw fought with Longtail too. He was starting to notice that Firestar's and his past weren't very different. "We should get started with training. I want to hear more about it later though."

Lionblaze grinned. "Okay. I just like to remember those heroic moments in my life." He turned and walked through the bushes. "Let's get going."

Echopaw smiled and went through as well.

Maybe he could become just like Firestar.


	3. Chapter 2

"Echopaw, you need to balance yourself after jumping back. Try it again."

The training only got harder. Echopaw tried to quickly swipe under Lionblaze's front paws, swing around and hit him on the shoulder, then fall back and land a few tail-lengths away, but he couldn't land quite correctly.

The cold winds didn't help. The trees shifted and swayed slightly, and the last of the leaves on some of the bushes blew away. The rocks in the training grounds were colder than anything Echopaw had touched before, so he tried to avoid running near them. The sky was still white as a leaf-bare rabbit's pelt.

"I can't land right in this cold wind. I shiver." Echopaw sat down and breathed out, seeing his own breath.

Lionblaze crouched. "Let me show you how I do it." He ran at Echopaw. At first, he faked Echopaw by leaping to the right a bit, then knocked Echopaw's front legs with his paws. He jumped around and pushed Echopaw on his shoulder, making Echopaw fall over himself. Like a elegant bird, Lionblaze landed without a single twitch out of place. "It's simply to unbalance your opponent, but you need to keep your own as well."

"Maybe if I had a thick pelt like you, I would be heavier and warmer." Echopaw picked himself up, shaking off the dust. "It'd be much easier."

"That's why with some moves, you need to add your own little twist to it." Lionblaze did his fake-out again. "Do you see? I added an extra jump to throw them off."

"Okay, still doesn't change that I'm cold." Echopaw analyzed Lionblaze and how he stood. He crouched and waited, figuring out what he could do.

Then, it came to him. Echopaw ran at Lionblaze. He copied Lionblaze's fake-out, jumping to the left before the right. He swiped at Lionblaze's legs and swung around, smacking him on the shoulder and leaping back. This time, though, he landed on the side of an uplifted rock and sprung off it, landing on Lionblaze while he was unbalanced and brought him to the ground. Finally, Echopaw pinned Lionblaze by putting a paw on his neck.

Lionblaze shoved Echopaw off. "Nice move." He recuperated himself.

Echopaw puffed out his chest. "Well, I was cold, so I wanted to warm up and add something that kept me moving."

"Well, let me see you try that move again on me."

"Okay, but you don't know what I'll throw in next!"

After getting back from training, as the sun started to fall toward the sun-drown place, Echopaw looked for Splashpaw. He was hoping to find and ask if she wanted to go on the evening patrol with him, Lionblaze, and Squirrelflight. She was always energetic, which was the thing Echopaw liked about her. Splashpaw explained that the twoleg den she used to live in was quiet and lonely, and she wasn't really liked by her twoleg. Some days, a happy young she-twoleg would come and cuddle with her, but other than that, her only friend was Jax. Much of a friend he was. Of course, she missed the young twoleg, but she felt she would have more excitement and friends here.

Echopaw spotted Splashpaw near the Guest kits, playing with balls of moss. Reilly chased one being guided by the wind as Splashpaw and Shila practiced pouncing on another. Splashpaw looked young enough to be a kit, but she was to be a warrior. Doesn't mean she can't act like a kit sometimes.

He walked over with a smile on his face. "Hey Splashpaw. Wanna go on the patrol?"

Splashpaw heard Echopaw and immediately darted in front of him and sat. "Yes! I've also been getting better at my hunting. Can I show you a cool thing I learned from Squirrelflight on the patrol?"

A young kit. "Sure. We'll get going as soon as Squirrelflight is ready."

"Okay." Splashpaw ran back to the kits, sneaking up on Shila and making her jump. They tussled with each other into a small pile of dried leaves.

Gina came out of her den. She saw Echopaw and said, "Echopaw, someone wants to talk with you, in private."

Echopaw saw Gina and tilted his head, "Who?"

"The she-cat in here."

The mysterious she-cat. She finally wanted to talk? Echopaw rushed over and went inside the Guest den, passing Gina while she exited. Inside the stone den, it was spacious and had plenty of room for at least 10 cats. Most of the beds in here were green patches of lonely grass, while others were clumps of collected moss. In the very corner of the den, the black and brown she-cat laid tight in a ball. Echopaw couldn't even see her head.

"You are leader of this 'clan?'" The she-cat asked abruptly.

"Yes." Echopaw sensed that asking her questions also would be too much.

It was silent for a few moments, like she expected Echopaw to ask something, then she continued. "Why save us? What do you stand to gain?"

"We don't want to gain anything." Echopaw sat down. "We saved you because we didn't want innocent cats killed."

"None of us are innocent." The she-cat lifted her head and stared at Echopaw. "All of us have done grim deeds."

"Who is 'us?'"

She went quite.

Echopaw just realized he asked a question. "I'm sorry. Go on."

Her ears twitched. "You must release me. I have to return to the upwalkerplace."

"Well, if you told us what group you're in and where you live, we can-"

"You don't understand!" The she-cat stood up. "You're too kind. My brothers and sisters think you are savages. They would attack you if they saw you with me. "

Echopaw backed up.

She returned to her corner. "I need to return home alone. If you come... I don't know what they would do." She curled into a ball again.

Echopaw didn't understand. What group did she belong to? And the way she said her brothers and sisters... It seemed like they were more powerful than her.

He left the den, letting Gina back in, but Echopaw couldn't get it out of his thoughts. He stared at his paws while he walked, thinking. Who was she?

"Echopaw, we're ready!" Splashpaw yelled from the entrance. "Their waiting just outside for us."

Oh, the patrol. "Coming!" Echopaw ran to Splashpaw's side and walked out of camp.

"Do you sense that? We have a cat on the inside."

"She's not a commander though, and it feels as though she might betray us."

"How many cats does she know are in the camp?"

"Hmm... 8, if you exclude her. But most of them are those flea-bag prison cats."

"So, do we attack now?"

"No, we wait. Those cats do not know yet of our involvement."

"Can you tell who's there though? Like which warriors are in camp? Recognize anyone?"

"Lionblaze and Squirrelflight left, but Dovewing and Cinderheart are still in camp with the she-cat apprentice and the prison cats."

"This is the perfect time to attack!"

"Quiet down you mouse-brain. We need to gather more cats."

"Oh yeah, like 12 cats aren't enough."

"And the time is not correct. We must attack when the entire clan is there."

"But if there's more cats, the more the chance we'll lose."

"If there's more cats, the more chance we'll deal serious damage. And anyways, if we lose, we can just use other commanders next time."

"Thistleclaw... You remind me so much of Tigerstar. A cold-blooded killer to the core."

"Ooh, you have no idea."


	4. Chapter 3

The wind blew through the trees as the patrol ventured to the river, as it marked the end of their territory to the south. From there, Echopaw and the others continued west to the edge of the forest, north to the border between their territory and the twolegplace, and east where their territory stopped at a thunderpath.

On the way, Echopaw and Splashpaw stopped by a new area they found on the trip east. A small patch of their territory led into a beautiful clearing filled with scents of herbs and flowers. Splashpaw began to show off her new moves while Echopaw tried to gather some of the herbs.

"Come on Echopaw! Dawnpaw already has enough herbs to last us all leaf-bare." Splashpaw bumped into Echopaw and meowed, "I wanna see if you can beat me in a fight."

Echopaw recognized the familiar scent of catmint. It was one herb that he could remember Dawnpaw saying it was very special. "Let me gather some more, then I'll fight you."

"What's so special about plants anyways? Why collect them?" Splashpaw twitched her whiskers.

Echopaw tried to think back to what a medicine cat does. "Herbs are what clans use to heal the sick and mend wounds. If we were to get into a dangerous battle, like the one in the sewers, we need these to keep us healthy."

"But why don't you just go to the white coated upwalk-... Twolegs? They always make me feel better."

"We're not kittypets. Remember?" Echopaw shrugged off her ignorance. "We need our own healing methods. And another thing at that, you're lucky you didn't go to the Cutter before you joined our clan."

"Yeah... What's a Cutter again?" Splashpaw really didn't know?

Echopaw didn't know how to reply and stared blankly. "Uh... well. Ask Squirrelflight. She'll tell you what they do." He returned to searching for catmint. "I'm looking for something like this." He showed Splashpaw the herbs in his jaws. "If you can help, that would be great."

"Hah... I guess I'll help." Splashpaw dashed into the bushes.

Echopaw smiled as she left. Silence. A kit's heart in such an excitable cat. Echopaw tasted the catmint, struggling not to eat it. Dawnpaw had said it would be tempting, but it was better as a healing herb for greencough.

He scanned the clearing again. It was gloriously green in such a season. Leaf-bare had barely touched this part of the forest for some reason. Still, it was nice to have a place here to warm up. They could probably make some kind of extra camp here for the Guests if they ever got the time. But right now, they had to prepare for snow. He saw a patch of catmint near the edge of the trees.

He trotted near them, but then stopped.

The bushes near the patch began to rustle.

Echopaw jumped back. "Splashpaw, is that you?"

The rustling ceased. But a strange scent still lingered.

Echopaw unsheathed his claws and stepped closer. "Come out!" He narrowed his eyes, trying to see between the leaves.

"Okay! Geez." A tom came out of the bushes. A familiar tom. "It's just me."

Echopaw sighed and unsheathed his claws. "Koul. You scared me." He sat back down.

Koul smirked. "I heard that you scare easily." Koul looked around the clearing. "I must say that you have a nice amount of territory. Ripe for prey and filled with green. I haven't seen much grass in a while."

"Why are you here?" Echopaw turned around, seeing if any other Poisons or Twoleg cats were around.

"Remember? I'm The Messenger. So, I have a message for you. A special message from a couple cats actually." Koul licked his paw. "First, Claude wanted to thank you again. He just can't stop thinking about you. Another thing from him is that the sewers are starting to become a busy place for loners, hopefully for the good."

"You mean it's becoming another way to travel for cats?" Echopaw was happy for the Poisons.

"Yes." Koul's eyes flashed. "Now for the important messages." He closed his eyes. "Loners and Upwalker cats alike are having problems. Very bad problems. And those problems all include the Broken Hearts."

Echopaw swallowed hard. "They are becoming more violent. I know. I've been scenting them on our border. I think they are going to attack us."

"Wouldn't be surprising. Technically, you killed two of their commanders." Koul looked down. "Food is becoming harder to find, the Broken Hearts are attacking any cat that gets in their way, and the cold days are getting colder. Of course, us Poisons don't really need much food, but the Broken Hearts are becoming a bother as well in the sewers."

"It's my fault. I should have let them save their commander. I shouldn't have got in their way." Echopaw shook his head.

"Echopaw, let me tell you from the knowledge I have of the Broken Hearts... It's not your fault. Many of their commanders die, and they get stronger with their comrades' death. Something is odd in their ranks. The leader has become hasty like he's a whole different person." Koul stared at Echopaw.

He sat still. "Okay."

"Next, the eastern forest has become a battlefield. The Mystery cats and the Assassins are going at each other. I'm just warning you if you go to see the twins, which I heard from Okani you were planning to."

"Yeah, I was going to soon. Do you know why they are going at each other?"

Koul's expression went dark. "Echopaw, I know you don't want to hear this." He shifted his paws. "The Mystery cats' camps are starting to be burnt to ash by the Assassins. The first attack on the Mystery cats was implemented by... Blade."

Echopaw widened his eyes. "Mudpaw?" He held a paw to his head. "He's become one of them. It's my fault he's one of them too. I should have noticed his absences in the evenings." Then he realized why Mudpaw left in the first place. "But we saved Gingerpaw, so he should want to come back to us."

Koul shook his head. "Sorry Echopaw, but I know that when you become an Assassin, you won't want to leave. And if you did, one of the leaders would kill you. He's a lost cause."

Echopaw looked down.

"Finally, I need you to hold onto this." Koul put his head into the bushes and brought out a small rock in his jaws. He spat it out and put his paw near it. "This is a gift from Glaive. A stone that depicts the Tenkai Twins' marks. Them and their commanders have this design on their chest as a symbol that they are gifted with special powers."

"Like what?" Echopaw tilted his head.

"I"m not sure. I don't know who their commanders are, and any info on them are kept in secret, so Glaive must really trust you to keep this safe and keep an eye out for this mark."

Echopaw glanced at the design. He blinked multiple times. He knew this mark from somewhere. It was the same design on...

Darkpaw! The mark on his neck. Darkpaw was a commander of the Twins! This was impossible. It would explain why he may keep quiet. And the way he communicates... Special powers.

"Thanks Koul. Is there anything you need? We have extra fresh-kill at the camp." Echopaw saved the conversation about Darkpaw for later.

"Eh. No. I don't need food that much." Koul turned back and went into the bushes. "I hope you can survive leaf-bare!"

He left with the last of the wind. Echopaw glimpsed at the rock again, hoping the design he saw before had changed. It hadn't. To think that after all this time, after all that they had gone through together, Darkpaw was a commander of the Twins.

He picked up the rock and looked around. Splashpaw should have gotten back by now. She must have got bored and went back to camp. Echopaw rolled his eyes at the thought of her and started toward the camp. He needed to talk with Darkpaw again.

"Brother, I've been having thoughts."

The white she-cat, along with the black tom, was sitting in a field of leaf-bare grown flowers, gleaming with white petals. The sky was darkening as the sun was starting to set on the cloudy day. The two siblings sat next to each other, looking down on the twolegplace not too far away.

The black tom wore a smug smile. "What are you thinking about?"

The she-cat breathed in as the wind settled. "A force beyond our reach has come into play. The Broken Hearts are being guided by a different leader."

"I've noticed that too. I don't mind new player being put into the game." The tom chuckled. "The power they possess is incredible."

The she-cat frowned at her brother. "But they are causing chaos! We must do something, or many cats will die."

"Hmm. I cannot say that I agree with your judgment on this situation." The tom flicked his tail. "It feels good for me not to be in control of these newcomers. I've needed a challenge for a long time now."

"Brother, you... This new force must be dealt with by it's opposite. We must talk to StarClan soon. Midnight, please hurry."

"You do know that I do not have as much enthusiasm as you do with this meeting."

"Hah, yes. I have known for many moons that you never sought knowledge in the light. Only in the dark." The she-cat turned away. "One more week."

The tom narrowed his eyes. "Yes. One more week."


	5. Chapter 4

The camp was normal, just how Echopaw left it. The Guests were still in their own little area, talking and playing with each other, Dovewing was in the warriors den, resting, the other warriors and Splashpaw had already returned and had gotten their fresh-kill to eat, and Cinderheart and Dawnpaw were in the medicine den talking. The sky had turned dark. It was almost time to get some sleep, but a matter had to be brought up before that.

Darkpaw... Echopaw looked around camp until he saw Darkpaw near the apprentice den, watching the kits play with Splashpaw. Echopaw didn't waste anytime walking to the middle of the clearing and jumping on top of highstone. He spat out the symbol rock he was carrying in his mouth and looked at it one more time, then announced. "May the ThunderClan warriors and Darkpaw please all come to the leader's den for a private meeting!"

Everyone heard his call and finished their meals. Darkpaw glanced at Echopaw with a questionable look.

Echopaw jumped down, grabbing the symbol rock again, and headed to the east wall, where a giant stood with an open entrance through it's roots, making a very spacious area for the leader to rest. It was built a few days ago when Dovewing found the roots to be bendable. After a few hours of heavy work, they were able to pry the new door open and find plenty of space inside. It was perfect for a leader's den.

As Echopaw walked inside it, he already found Lionblaze sitting inside. Lionblaze licked his paws, then noticed Echopaw. "Echopaw. What's this about?"

"I'll tell you when everyone gets here. Look at this for now and see if you recognize it." He kicked the symbol rock across the stone floor. It skidded right to Lionblaze.

Lionblaze got closer to it, coming to the same realization Echopaw did. "This is what Darkpaw has on his neck. What does it mean?"

Soon, Squirrelflight made her way inside. "What does what mean?"

It became a game of pass around. Cats coming in and all wanting to look at the mark. Dovewing, then Cinderheart. Finally, in the few moments they had to see the symbol, Darkpaw entered, staring at Echopaw. Before Darkpaw got the chance to see the rock, Echopaw hid it under his hind leg.

"Everyone, I have called you here because I have gotten news from Koul." Echopaw started.

Lionblaze smirked. "Nice to hear he returned to the Poisons alright. I'm assuming."

"Yes he's gone back with Claude, but he brought grim news to us." Echopaw looked away. "The Broken Hearts are becoming more violent in the twolegplace, and I guess it's just a matter of time before they cross our borders."

Squirrelflight growled. "Let them come. We can take a few loners, right Cinderheart?"

"Yeah!" Cinderheart meowed. "We also will have the homefield advantage in the forest. All they know how to do is fight in the twolegplace."

"What else?" Lionblaze turned to Echopaw again.

"The next thing is why I didn't want Dawnpaw or her family to hear this." Echopaw stared at Squirrelflight. "The Mystery cats and the Assassins are in a war, and Blade started it."

"Mudpaw?" Squirrelflight gasped. "He's... He's really one of them now."

Lionblaze shook his head. "Look where grief got him."

Dovewing shook his head. "I should have kept an eye on him more."

Darkpaw had kept quiet the whole time. He kept trying to see what Echopaw was hiding from him.

Echopaw was ready. "And the last bit of news he gave me was this." He pushed the rock out from under his legs and into the middle of the den for all to see. "Glaive gifted this to me. It is the mark of the Tenkai Twins and their commanders."

The attention suddenly turned on Darkpaw and his neck. The same mark.

Darkpaw wasn't moved. He sat still, glaring at Echopaw.

Lionblaze looked back at the rock. "Wow. Who would've thought..."

Squirrelflight's tail curled. "So we have a powerful cat in our clan."

Dovewing rolled his eyes. "I could see where he would be so quiet if he had a position like that."

Echopaw was happy they weren't taking the news too seriously. "Darkpaw, just tell me why you didn't tell us this earlier. I want to know."

Darkpaw looked away and closed his eyes.

Dovewing smiled unbelievably. "He can't talk, remember? How will he speak to you?"

Darkpaw opened his eyes again, revealing them to be shining gray. A voice came, but Darkpaw's mouth was closed, "It is true. I am a servant of the twins."

Everyone backed away. Cinderheart was extremely freaked out. "How did he do that?"

Lionblaze smirked. "Just like Jayfeather. Speaking through our minds?"

Darkpaw nodded. "I am sorry I could not tell you earlier. This secret is very important to keep hidden. Only the select chosen cats can know of our existence."

Echopaw thought of the cats he met before. "So Glaive and Claude are the ones that know who you are?"

"Yes, and a few others."

"But you just said 'our.' Where are the other commanders?"

Darkpaw puffed his chest out. "There are four of us, known as the 'Elementals.' We were each assigned to keep watch on each group that may cause trouble."

Echopaw tried to work out what he was saying. "So, you were a part of the Twoleg Cats to keep an eye on them? Like a protector?"

"Indeed. But since Glaive has been wise keeping his cats in order, my position became obsolete. That is, until you showed up and I found my chance to join you. I intend to stay here and inform my masters of any mishap that may take place within StoneClan, and have had powers gifted to me from them to ensure that I am fit to fight against any cat I encounter."

Echopaw looked down at the symbol on the rock. "I guess that's fine, but do you really want to be a warrior of StoneClan?"

Darkpaw sighed. "My intentions aren't to become part of your clan for my entire life. I must return to my masters after my duty has been fulfilled. However, I must say that the adventures you have lifted my spirit in a way I have never felt before." Darkpaw shifted his paws. "Echopaw, if you would be so humbled to let me become a warrior of StoneClan until you have brought peace, it would both please my master and I myself."

Cinderheart tilted her head. "You can't say anything bad about him. He's a cat of strong will and filled with good intentions. And isn't another powerful cat exactly what we need for our mission to defeat BloodClan?"

Lionblaze nodded. "I concur with Cinderheart. It's not like he will betray us... Will you?"

Darkpaw's eyes shrouded. "If it is the will of my masters, I must obey their command. The chances that they would make that decision is slim, though."

Squirrelflight meowed. "Echopaw, him being a commander, or elemental, of the twins doesn't change much. He still wants to be a warrior. He still wants to learn about our customs. Like you said, he's a protector."

Echopaw let out a small chuckle. "I guess." He looked at Darkpaw once more. "Darkpaw, if you truly wish to aid us, then we cannot say no."

Darkpaw grinned. "I promise you that I will help you in any way possible."

Echopaw got intrigued. "Can you take us to the twins? Dovewing is having trouble pinpointing exactly where they are."

"It is an easy task. If that is what you wish." Darkpaw closed his eyes. "This ability to communicate is limited, so I must become mute again. I will try to converse with you in other ways, and finally... keep my identity secret."

Echopaw agreed. "You all are dismissed."

Squirrelflight, Cinderheart, Darkpaw, and Dovewing exited, leaving Lionblaze and Echopaw sitting in the silence for a couple moments.

Lionblaze spoke up. "Echopaw, you do know that this clan is drifting away from it's purpose."

Echopaw was shocked at Lionblaze's sudden comment. "What do you mean?"

"What is this clan's mission?"

"To defeat BloodClan."

Lionblaze flicked his tail. "Time is not on our side. If they attack before we find them, my clan is doomed." He clawed the ground. "And right now, we're being misguided with the Broken Hearts and the twins."

Echopaw saw his point. "I understand, but rushing straight into battle doesn't get us anywhere. Isn't that what you taught me?"

"Don't try to turn my sayings against me." He frowned. "I'm sorry. I haven't felt this much fear in a long time, and I get upset a lot."

"It's okay. We're going to try our best to stop BloodClan, but first we must deal with the threat in front of us, or we'll have more of an enemy to face in the end."

Lionblaze lightened up. "You know Echopaw... You're starting to sound like a leader already." He stood up. "Get some sleep. It's going to be a hard day of training tomorrow for you."

Echopaw laughed. "Like it wasn't hard enough already."

Lionblaze left. Echopaw sat alone in the den, with the symbol rock still in the center. He picked it up with his teeth and took one last look at the den. One day, he thought. He exited the den and headed for the fresh-kill pile before returning to his nest in the apprentice's den.


	6. Chapter 5

"Echopaw..."

Echopaw opened his eyes. He couldn't see anything but darkness. Nothing at all. He jumped to his feet and stumbled forward. Where was he? Was he blind!? No. It must be a dream. Echopaw closed his eyes again to try to wake up, but he couldn't.

After a few minutes, he opened his eyes again and saw a forest around him. It was destroyed and withered. The ground was a pale brown, the sky was shrouded in black clouds, and not a single light could be seen, but the area around him was visible.

Out of nowhere, a figure appeared and dashed past him. A nick appeared on his cheek and he recoiled back. Ouch! That hurt! He stood ready to fight, but examined his wound. It was deep.

"Welcome to my paradise, young one. I do hope you enjoy your stay."

A voice echoed around him. A familiar, yet unknown voice. It was deep and dark.

Again, the shadow rushed past him and left a mark on his flank. Echopaw tried to dodge the attack, but it was too late. He fell to his belly from the sudden pain in his hind leg. "Stop! Stop!"

"Aw, but I'm just starting!" The figure stopped moving and stood in front of him. It was strange. He couldn't focus on what he actually looked like. All he saw was a black tom with purple eyes. No more. The figure's mouth moved slightly with the words being spoken. "I want to have a fight with you, Echopaw. I desire to test your strength."

"No! Get me out of here. I don't want to fight."

"Ooh, but aren't you supposed to be brave?" The figure grew in size. He stood twice as tall as Echopaw. "Show me what you got, little hero."

Before Echopaw knew it, the battle had begun. The huge tom's body may have been obscured, but Echopaw could tell what his claws looked like as they pounded the the ground where he once stood. Echopaw jumped back, then lunged at the tom's neck. He opened his mouth to cut into the tom's throat, but he vanished into thin air. Echopaw fell on his face and was left to wonder what just happened. How could such a huge cat disappear like that?

"Sad. I thought you could see past any trick? That's one thing my sister was wrong about you." The figure reappeared two tail-lengths in front of Echopaw, readying a headbutt. "Let's see if she was right about your persistance."

Echopaw braced himself. The tom smacked into him. The blow rocketed Echopaw into a tree. He heard his back crack and found himself in even more pain. He fell to the ground and shuddered. How could he win? The tom was just too powerful and quick.

The tom smiled devilishly. "As predicted, she was wrong about that as well. Such a shame." He paced forward and picked Echopaw up by the scruff with his teeth, large enough to crush him in one bite. "She didn't talk about this. Survivability, hehehe."

"No! I give up! Don't kill me!" Echopaw yowled.

"You make me laugh." The tom let go of Echopaw and began shrinking down to his original size as he chuckled to himself. "So much for the saviour of the upwalkerplace! You are more of a weakling than I thought! Ha ha ha!"

Echopaw felt himself regain his strength. "Who are you!?"

"Intelligence. Needs improvement." The tom scolded mockingly. "You fool! How can you not tell already? I am the darkness of the upwalkerplace. The father of all evil and destruction. The brother to the sister of goodness and peace."

He froze and said. "You're the brother..."

"Finally! Haha!" The tom stepped closer. "Nice to meet you, leader of StoneClan." His voice was filled with sarcasm and hidden insults.

The second twin. An evil brother to a good sister. How in StarClan could they be related? This cat was one of the most menacing and scary toms Echopaw had ever seen. Not to mention he had a very rude attitude.

Echopaw meowed, "What do you want? To kill me?"

The tom sat down and laughed more. "No. I was just trying to scare you. I want to have my fun."

"You call this fun?"

He answered, "My kind of fun requires others to suffer." He continued on and said, "I'm here to deliver a vision, actually." The tom drew a circle in the ground.

"What?" Echopaw looked down into the circle to see an image forming. There were cats of all kinds in an alleyway, blocking both exits, and entrapping a dark ginger she-cat in the middle with another lean black tom. It was smaller than the tom Echopaw was talking with, and was bigger than Scourge, so this cat was new to him. However, a feeling inside Echopaw told him he had seen this cat before.

The black tom shuddered, and his eyes glowed red. "You broke my heart. Now it's time I ripped your's open!"

The next scene was too unbearable to describe. Echopaw brushed the dirt away, along with the vision and glared back up at the twin. "What do you stand to gain by giving me this vision?"

The tom smiled as he started to drift away. "Nothing... At least nothing of your knowledge."

Echopaw shook his head as the dream blurred back into nothingness.

"Hey, Echopaw. You okay?"

Echopaw woke up to see Dawnpaw looking at him worriedly. He sat up and saw that it was already morning. Darkpaw and Splashpaw weren't in their nests, probably out with the morning patrol.

Dawnpaw was examining his hind leg. "You're bleeding here. What happened?"

Echopaw lifted his front leg to look. He was bleeding. Not too much, but enough to be a wound that needs attention. "I fought with a cat."

Dawnpaw shook her head. "But when you went to sleep, you didn't have this, and you didn't go out in the middle of the night."

"I fought in my dreams, with the brother twin."

Dawnpaw widened her eyes. "No... He did this? How?"

Echopaw licked the wound. "I have no idea, but I did receive another vision. I need to talk to Squirrelflight."

"What for?

Echopaw sighed and exited the den while answering, "She's going to die."


	7. Chapter 6

The wind had picked up again. This time, it blew harder than it did before, causing the fallen leaves to brush into the river. The bushes clung onto what little brush they had left, while the trees shivered in the freezing gale. Clouds covered overhead, not a trace of sunlight to be visible, but an expanse of the white glow. Prey was rare to find, and the best herbs Dawnpaw can collect is stored away already. They needed to survive 3 moons like this. It's going to be hard.

Echopaw paced around the clearing, staring at the ground and thinking of his dream. The dark twin had come and given him another vision, and it was as foreboding as ever. Squirrelflight becomes trapped in a mass of cats and is killed by a black tom. And what was all that talk about "you broke my heart..."

A Broken Heart! Well, at least he figured out what group the cat belonged to hopefully. Now there was just one problem. How was he supposed to keep Squirrelflight safe? The Broken Hearts were on the edge of their territory, just waiting. Taking her with him to see the twins wasn't any better. The decision he made would affect the lives of all cats in StoneClan and the twolegplace as well. Echopaw started to shake.

The concern that he had with Gingerpaw surfaced once more, and this time, Squirrelflight's life was on the line. What was he going to tell her? Hey Squirrelflight, you're going to die, but I'll try to save you... ugh, he thought, I'm horrible at explaining things. Echopaw continued to pace around highstone.

"Echopaw, the morning patrol is back."

Echopaw turned and saw Lionblaze, Dovewing, Darkpaw, and Squirrelflight entering camp. Dawnpaw and Cinderheart inspected them, hoping to hear they found any more food or herbs. To their disappointment, they didn't find any herbs and only brought back three mice.

Dawnpaw returned to the medicine den. Cinderheart, though, came toward Echopaw's circle of thought and asked, "Are you thinking about your dream?"

Echopaw looked up, then back at his feet. "Dawnpaw told you... Yes. The vision was too blurry. I couldn't see who the black tom that was attacking Squirrelflight, but I do know that he was probably in the Broken Hearts."

"Makes sense." Cinderheart tried to hide her fearful emotions. "Those mouse-dung loners are on the edge of our territory. Do you think they're planning to attack us? Maybe they are plotting to attack Squirrelflight when she's alone, or maybe-"

"Calm down. We won't let that happen." Echopaw looked up at the white sky. "I'll make sure she doesn't go off alone."

"The bigger question is, how will she react when she finds out?" Cinderheart sat down, glancing at Squirrelflight for a moment. "You'll have to tell her."

"I will, but here's a bigger question." Echopaw remembered something Glaive told him. "Glaive mentioned to me that the dark twin's visions are confusing and complex. Glaive said that he wasn't any good either. So the problem is, am I looking at this the wrong way? Is he trying to make me become protective of Squirrelflight so the vision will come true? If I don't do anything, will Squirrelflight still die?"

"That must be a heavy load on your mind. I'm sorry I can't help. Have you ever thought that these visions are actually helping? Would we have saved Gingerpaw without the twins' help?"

"No, we wouldn't have. They do help." Echopaw crouched and put his paws over his head. "But they give me such a headache with the visions. I feel like all of your lives are in my paws, and I don't know if I'm making the right choices."

Cinderheart came closer and laid a paw on Echopaw's shoulder. "The twins didn't give you the responsibility. You took it on when you started this clan. The twins only want to aid you to what I've heard, but before them, you took this position and accepted to hold StoneClan in your paws."

She was right. Echopaw peeked one eye out between his paws. "I still get headaches."

"And by the look of it, a couple injuries too." She noticed his injury. "You must be careful. I've seen this happen to the cats back home before the final battle. They were being trained in their sleep, and their injuries followed them into reality." Cinderheart swallowed hard. "I heard a cat died in his dreams."

Echopaw froze. Died?! Would the dark twin really kill him? "That doesn't make me feel any better."

"I'm just warning you."

"I can't control if or when I meet them."

"Then it seems they hold you in their paws." Cinderheart began to walk away. "Think of their position. They have the weight of all the cats in the twolegplace on their backs."

Echopaw got back up and began pacing again. The twins do have it harder than him. But they have powers. Powers to give other visions of the future. Yeah, if Echopaw had the responsibility of the twolegplace with strength like theirs, he might be less stressed.

Lionblaze approached Echopaw. "Echopaw, are you okay?"

"No."

"What's wrong? Something happen while we were gone?"

Echopaw clawed at the dirt. "You're not going to like it." He faced Lionblaze. "I had a dream with the dark twin. The brother."

Lionblaze whispered into his ear. "Do you want to talk about this somewhere more private?"

"No. I'm fine." Echopaw wiped the tear in his eye away. "I'm going to have to tell cats about it anyways." He collected himself. "The twin gave me another vision. He gave me a vision much like the last."

Lionblaze widened his eyes. "Someone dies."

He nodded. "And you won't believe who."

"Echopaw!" A voice behind Echopaw made him jump. It was Splashpaw. "You need to lighten up. Have a little fun once in awhile."

Echopaw took a second to slow his heart. Splashpaw had almost scared the fur off him.

"I thought you had grown out of being scared." Lionblaze chuckled.

Echopaw glowered at Lionblaze. Then turned back to Splashpaw. "This is more important than having fun right now."

Splashpaw rolled her eyes. "But have you ever played with the little ones, or had a good time just sitting down and chatting without worrying of anything else? Come on and play with the kits and me." She began to push him toward the small stream where the Guests were.

"Splashpaw, no. This is more important. It concerns our future."

"Well, focus on the present for now. Come play with us."

"Please. I'm not in the mood. I need to talk with Lionblaze."

"No! You need to relax! You're always jumpy and anxious. You can talk with Lionblaze later."

"No! That's final! I'm not playing with anyone right now! I mean it!"

"You are! Even if I have to force you, you mouse-br-"

"Squirrelflight is going to die!"

Now he had done it. He howled it so loud, no one could have not heard it. The Guests, Lionblaze, and the other warriors stared at Echopaw. Surprisingly, even the strange she-cat came out to see what had happened. The silence was brutal, and everything seemed to freeze in place. Splashpaw let her grip go and slowly backed away from him, starting to tear up. "You-... Y-you can't truly mean that E-Echopaw. What are you saying?"

Echopaw noticed he was breathing heavily, but he was still angry at her. "Splashpaw, I'm sorry I yelled at you."

She began to cry. "Tell me! Why did you say that!?"

Echopaw didn't know how to explain it simply. He could only stutter out his words. "I-I had another vision. She... It... Splashpaw, I..."

Before he could finish, she ran into the apprentices' den, leaving a trail of tears. Echopaw reached a paw out, then took it back.

Lionblaze approached him first. "Is this true?"

Echopaw shivered. "Yes... The dark twin gave me the vision. And I could make out Squirrelflight in it, being killed."

Squirrelflight had overheard. She sulked into the warriors den with Dovewing. Cinderheart went to her side as well. The Guests returned to their dens, except for Harlem, Darkpaw, and the strange she-cat, who stayed out to hear more.

Lionblaze took a deep breath. "I can't believe it..." He closed his eyes.

Echopaw stammered. "We can do something to protect her, but I don't know what. The dark twin is known to play tricks."

"Maybe he gave you that vision to confuse you."

"Visions come from both of the twins. It takes both of them to make a vision. It must be true, but the brother made it too foggy for me to make out anything else except that the black tom who kills her is a Broken Heart and seems to have a grudge on her."

Lionblaze turned around. "We'll talk later Echopaw. I need to see how Squirrelflight is taking it."

Echopaw sat still, staring at nothing. Harlem gazed down at the strange she-cat. She noticed him staring at her. Harlem held a firm look on her.

The she-cat sighed, then spoke up. "Echopaw, I need to tell you something."

Harlem got up. "She does." He walked down the small hill. "I thought something was familiar about her."

Darkpaw raised an eye at the she-cat as well.

Echopaw faced the she-cat. "What could you possibly say right now that will help me?"

The she-cat bowed. "I did not know you received visions from the twins. If you are getting help from them, you must be seeking peace." She looked away. "I was raised with that belief, but my heart was broken when my mother, who had told me of them, died in a fight with BloodClan."

Echopaw opened his mouth slightly after she said 'my heart was broken.'

She looked Echopaw straight in the eye. "I am a Broken Heart, and I may be able to help you."

Echopaw shook his head. "You've been hiding this from me this whole time? Why?"

She stepped a few paces back. "Echopaw, I only wanted to save you from the anger of my brothers and sisters. If they found me here, they would kill you and your friends. The last thing I want is for any of you to die. I want to help."

"I don't believe you." Echopaw trembled. "Why didn't you flee with the other Broken Hearts when Okani was bringing you here? Huh?"

The she-cat crouched into her ball and looked at Echopaw with the same eyes she had in the den. "My brothers told me to stay... to find you."

Echopaw became enraged. "You're a spy?" Echopaw raised his claws.

Suddenly, Darkpaw sped to Echopaw and stopped him. He brushed away Echopaw's unsheathed claw and thrusted his paw onto Echopaw's chest, blowing him back. Echopaw went skidding across the ground, then laid still, struggling to stare at Darkpaw.

Harlem padded in front of Darkpaw. "I agree with Darkpaw here. Terra no longer wants to hurt us. They were probably going to find this place anyways, with or without her here." He glanced at the she-cat, Terra. "Go back to your den Echopaw, get yourself together, then we'll talk more tonite."

Echopaw got up, feeling the sting in his chest. Darkpaw's hit was hard. Echopaw glared at the three one more time, then crawled his way to the leader's den. He wasn't going to go to the apprentice's den where Splashpaw was probably crying.

The oak rose high above him as he walked inside. Echopaw went to the back of the den and curled up to take a small nap.

Whispers bounced in his head. The dark twin's voice. "My kind of fun requires others to suffer."


	8. Chapter 7

"Brother, what did you do!?" The white she-cat yelled at the black tom next to her.

"I gave him a vision, like we planned," The black tom smirked sarcastically.

"You also gave him anger! You planted your seed of strife, like you do with every cat!" The she-cat growled. "But doing that to Echopaw... You bastard!"

"Call me whatever you want sister. It will not change anything."

"I should have never given you that task. Like I 'd believe you wouldn't try something."

"Mistake on your part."

The she-cat scowled at the tom. "Are you saying my trust in you has withered?"

"No, of course not. You know I'm not all goody four-paws like you. If you want Echopaw to receive a vision without a bit of turmoil thrown into it, go do it yourself." The tom raised an eyebrow. "I know you take a liking to him."

"Hmph." She stared at the twolegplace. "If anything happens to Echopaw, brother..."

The tom rolled his eyes. "Let's just see what happens."

What could Echopaw say? He had hurt Splashpaw's feelings, most likely Squirrelflight's hopes as well, raised his claw to a cat only wanted to help, and was struck down by Darkpaw in his act of rage. What was happening to him?

Splashpaw was right. He has been too stressed. Between the twins' and the Broken Hearts waiting at the edge of the territory, he's surprised he hasn't gone completely insane yet. Leading this clan... Having all these emotions is not good for a leader. Echopaw curled tighter into a ball. Just need time to think.

The day seemed to go by slowly. The sky was still clouded throughout, just like the previous days, so keeping track of time was hard. All Echopaw could do was stay in the leader's den, contemplating what he would do next.

"Echopaw..." Dawnpaw came inside.

Echopaw sniffed. "What?"

Dawnpaw looked back outside, then back at him. "I only want to talk. I want to make sure you're okay."

He lifted his head. "I can't take much more. Leading this clan has become so confusing, and it feels like the twins are hurting more than helping. It is too much to stand."

"We've already agreed that the twins are on our side."

"Then why did the dark twin almost kill me last night?"

Dawnpaw went silent.

Echopaw returned to his morose mood. "The clan has become a target for the Broken Hearts, and who knows how long until they finally cross our borders?"

"Well, I can think of one cat that might be able to talk about that."

He gaped at her. "How can we even trust anything she says? She's one of them!"

Dawnpaw began to debate with him. "She may be one of them, but she was brave enough to reveal herself as one. What kind of spy would purposefully expose herself?"

"The one's that want to get close to us, so when the time comes to chose between where her loyalties lie, she can easily eliminate us."

She stopped for a moment. "Echopaw, you don't really think that. That sounds too absurd to be anywhere near the truth," She huffed, "Darkpaw and Harlem seem to stand with her. How can you explain that? Darkpaw's one of the twins' commanders."

The bombshell dropped. "How did you know that?"

Dawnpaw bit back her response for a few seconds. "Cinderheart told me."

"Did she tell you anything else?" Mudpaw...

"No, but how could you keep that kind of important information from me?"

Whew... If she had heard about Mudpaw... "There wasn't a reason." Echopaw looked at her. "Darkpaw works for both the twins. He could turn evil at any moment if they told him to."

"But I remember hearing that a decision like that couldn't be made unless they both agreed." Geez, Cinderheart told her almost everything, didn't she?

"Of course." Echopaw returned to Terra. "I still feel she's going to have a hard time deciding if she wants to help us, or go back to her group."

"And if she does choose to return to the Broken Hearts, no harm right?"

"She'd know where our camp is. She'd know how our clan works. She'd tell her groupmates all about us so they can have an advantage on us," Echopaw scowled, "I don't see how we can get out of this without one of us dying. It's either her or the clan, and I care more about the clan."

"It doesn't have to come to that Echopaw. I know you know there's always another way. Not everything is white and black."

That's it. An epiphany with an impact of a thousand monsters struck him. "Dawnpaw... you genius!" Echopaw stood up. "I've been looking at everything as if it's good or bad. My decisions, the loners and kittypets, the groups." He eyes lit up. "The visions. The way I go about them. There's always another way. Thank you Dawnpaw. I'm going to go talk with Terra."

"Y-Your welcome." Dawnpaw looked astonished. "I'm glad I could help."

Echopaw rushed out of the den. Maybe there was a chance that every problem he comes across could have a third choice. Terra can go back to the Broken Hearts, risk her safety by divulging her groups' information, or... or we can keep her safe. He could ask her to stay in StoneClan until she could find somewhere in the twolegplace or other that is safe. If she truly wanted to prevent us from being killed, guess that would have to be her option.

"Terra, Darkpaw, Harlem... I'm sorry about earlier."

The sky was turning dark, the wind died down, and cats began to return from their patrols. Echopaw approached the hill in the camp where the three were sitting next to each other.

Darkpaw rose his chin and spoke... telepathically. "Have you regained your senses?"

Echopaw nodded. "I'm ready to talk to Terra and hear what she has to say."

Terra sat behind them. She looked scared. "Are you sure he won't attack me again Harlem?"

"Yes, calm down." Harlem shifted his stance. "Terra here was an old friend of mine. I took her into my Upwalker family. However, she escaped the next night, probably to join up with those rotting Broken Hearts."

Terra nodded. "Yes, they offered me a chance to get revenge on BloodClan for killing my mother. I was known as Stealthy because I was so quick and fast. At first, I couldn't think of a reason to say no, yet... After so many months, I didn't see how I would become a true Broken Heart. All I wanted was for my mother's killer to pay. When I was captured, I realized there's more ways to go about that than to team up with savages like those cats."

Echopaw smiled. "You went for option three. Both abandon your group and the twolegplace to escape here. I'm guessing the reason you were eager to stay with Okani was less because your group mates told you, but more because you wanted to abandon them."

"How did you..." Terra was stupefied. "I guess I'm an open book to you wild cats."

"I just guessed."

Harlem interrupted. "Wait, so what were you planning to do after you got here?"

"I-I..." Terra looked away. "You guys wouldn't let me leave without knowing what group I belonged to. I didn't want to go back. I thought I'd say my thanks and leave, but then you announced that you would return us to our friends."

Echopaw twitched his whiskers. "I'm sorry. If you would have told us earlier-"

"You wild cats would have killed me."

"We're not killers."

"And I've partly noticed that. You've been leading the clan, defeating evil. That's what I thought you were, a good cat." She curled her tail. "And then you attacked me after I tried to talk to you as softly as I could."

"Again, I express my sincerest apology Terra. The moment you chose to talk couldn't have been any worse."

Harlem agreed. "Next time Terra, take it slow after everything dies down. Echopaw, as I've noticed, is very fragile right now."

Echopaw frowned at him for a second. "I'm getting better."

"Right." He gestured his paw. "I apologize. I am just a sceptic. That's why I have always stayed up on this hill, watching you all operate this clan. It's very complex and well thought out." He walked away. "I hope to talk more about this clan soon. I want to know how it works."

Darkpaw looked into Echopaw's eyes. "She will help you. Trust her." He left after Harlem.

Echopaw was alone with Terra. He decided it was time to ask the bigger questions. "Terra, do you know about our clan?"

"Everything you have done while I was here. I know you hunt for prey in the forest. You take care of each other. Some of the cats your age go out to 'train,' or whatever you mean by that. That's all I can really make sense of."

"This is a clan. A group of warrior cats under StarClan. Kits grow up to be apprentices. so they can train to get strong. When they train enough, they can become warriors. Warriors are the cats who make this clan great. We rely on each other, some go out to find fresh-kill, others, like kits and elders, stay here and talk about their dreams or pasts. We all follow the warrior code and live peacefully." Echopaw stopped. "Well, we're not peaceful yet, but you get the point. More peaceful than any group in the twolegplace."

Terra sounded interested. "It seems that this... clan... is exciting to be in. You must be the leader. I've been hearing that all the time."

"Yes, I'm the leader, and I wanted to ask, do you want to join our clan?"

"Oh." Terra flinched back. "I-I'm not saying no. It's too sudden. All I wanted was to be safe, but joining you... It looks like you'll face dangers throughout your time here. I don't know if I can take that kind of risk."

"No worries. Take your time to decide. If not, I will gladly let you leave. You should travel south, though, if you don't want to run into any of your group mates." Echopaw nodded. "If that's all, I must be going. I have many more cats to talk to."

"Don't let me keep you." Terra laughed. "I hope that everything turns out okay. That other one seemed very upset."

"Yeah."

Time to go sort things out with Splashpaw. How was he going to say sorry? Would she even listen to him? Echopaw trotted toward the apprentices' den, seeing Splashpaw still curled up. He paced slowly as he got closer.

Splashpaw had peeked to see that he had come in. "Go away."

Somehow, he's the one trying to comfort someone else this time. This was going to be hard. "Splashpaw, I'm sorry I yelled at you."

"Take back what you said." Splashpaw sniffled. "Take it back."

He looked away for a second. "Splashpaw, I can't. It was a vision. I can't take back what they showed me."

"Make the vision go away."

"That's not how it works"

"Make it work."

"Splashpaw, please."

Her head lowered. "It's just... What can we do?"

"We can stop it, just like we did with Gingerpaw." Echopaw faced the exit. "Have hope."

"Echopaw..." Gingerpaw lifted her head and exposed her teary eyes. "Thanks. I just need time to recover."

"We all do Splashpaw. First, we must get rid of those Broken Hearts on the edge of our territory. Then, we will travel to the twins to find out what's really going on." Echopaw's voice soothed. "I'll make sure Squirrelflight is safe the whole time."

Splashpaw nodded, then went back to her rest.

Echopaw returned to the clearing. The air became cold, trees twittered, and the cats withdrew into the dens. The den which the warriors slept was being watched by Lionblaze. Echopaw approached Lionblaze, checking to see if anyone else was around.

He asked to Lionblaze, "Hey, is Squirrelflight okay?"

"Yes, she's fine. I wish that the information didn't have to come so suddenly. It would have been better to reveal that in private." Lionblaze frowned.

"I'm sorry. Splashpaw was interrupting us and I was stilled stressed about the dream."

"She was right you know." He flicked his tail. "You do need to relax. If you can't relax, that's what will happen."

Echopaw was astonished that Lionblaze took her side until he finally understood. "I know. It's this clan, and my position. I feel as though I have to be serious all the time."

"Don't think that. Even the eldest of leaders needs to feel like a kit sometimes. And you need to feel like a kit as much as you can before becoming leader. Live the life you want."

"I... I can't." He grimaced at the thought of the twins. "I live the life they want. The twins ideals of me. They control my life."

"I can't entirely agree. I think they're trying to keep you alive to live your life. There are a lot of dangers we're facing and death can come at any moment. If the twins didn't help you, Gingerpaw would be dead by now, you wouldn't have met Glaive and made peace with the Twoleg cats and Poisons, and we wouldn't be able to protect Squirrelflight."

Echopaw tilted his head. "You're a very good assumer."

"Heh, I get it from my brother."

"Jayfeather?"

"Yep."

Jayfeather, the mind reader. Wouldn't he come in handy right now. "Thanks. I'll talk to Squirrelflight later. I need to rethink what I'll say."

"I think she'll be fine. She's been in plenty of dangers before, and she knows that what you get are just visions, not set in stone."

Stone. Hah. Echopaw walked across the clearing and stopped in front of the leader's den. The life he lived was set in stone, but the choices he made sculpted what it would look like. A hero that both defeated BloodClan and saved the forest clans and brought peace to the twolegplace, or one that tried. That was the reality of it. He needed to figure this all out. A mind reader might be good right now, but the twins would be more essential to talk to. They were the ones who knew everything. Looking up at the tree's trunk, he thought about what he'd become of a warrior of StoneClan. One day, but not today.


	9. Chapter 8

The forest was silent. At the edge of the border of trees, cats of all kinds gathered above the stone wall. They sat, staring with dark eyes into the forest. Eager and ready, they then looked at two cats coming from behind below them. They were shrouded in shadow, the color of their fur concealed. The two cats leaped to the top of the wall and scanned the other cats. The bigger one, a sharp clawed, sharp fanged tom with burly legs and orange eyes stood taller than the smaller and more sly tom next to him. They gazed slowly to the edge of the bushes and laid their eyes on the path in front of them.

The tall tom spoke deeply. "We shall finish this. We shall avenge Zon. We shall avenge Koth. The Broken Hearts will crush the Clan with our sheer prowess. They will be left to grovel at our paws and feel the pain we have been cursed to endure."

The sly tom yowled, "Kill all who stand in your way. No mercy. No surrender."

They proceeded to run into the trees, chuckling and clawing at the ground. The toms led the way, lowering their heads and growling in dark harmony, "Let the age of Broken Hearts reign, and the Dark Forest shall once again rise to destroy the clans forever."

Echopaw sensed something. In his sleep, he felt as though he was being watched. The twins? Dawnpaw? No, something different. Something evil.

He opened his eyes and looked out the den. The clan was asleep. The moon was finally out, a crescent in an opening in the clouds. The wind had picked up again and created a slight breeze that rolled across Echopaw's pelt.

The feeling he had didn't go away. There's something wrong. He stood up and peeked his head out of the tree. The Guests den was unmoving, as well as all the other dens. The bare trees whistled, and it sounded like they were shrieking. Is he dreaming?

"Echopaw!"

He didn't jump up this time, but only flinched a bit. He was too tired to jump. It was Terra. She had appeared behind him, wide eyes and fur bristled.

Terra cried out, "They're coming!"

Echopaw rubbed his eyes. "Who?"

"The Broken Hearts!"

His heart started to race. The Broken Hearts! At this time of night? Echopaw glanced at every corner of the camp, then back at Terra. "How do you know?"

"I can feel it. We have a special connection, one that I wish to remove. They can sense me and I can sense them. This is why I should have left earlier. They're using me to find you!"

"Calm down, Terra. Remember, without you, they would have found us anyways." The clan cats and guest were waking up, overhearing him and Terra. "I can feel it too. They're watching us. They're coming for us."

Terra buried her head into her paws.

Dovewing came out of the warriors' den, shaking her head. She called to Echopaw. "What's going on?"

Lionblaze came out next. "Echopaw, is something happening?"

Echopaw rushed to highstone, leaping to the top and standing above his clanmates. "The Broken Hearts are coming. We need to prepare."

Cinderheart and Dawnpaw came out of the medicine den. Cinderheart asked, "How do you know?"

"I feel their vengeance. Terra senses it too."

Harlem and the she-cat sisters came out next. Soon enough, all the cats were outside, sitting at the foot of highstone. Terra was hunched in the corner of the camp, looking all directions in fear.

Dovewing closed her eyes, focusing on her senses. "The Broken Hearts... They're... They're... Ah!" She fell back, breathing hard. "I-I can't use my powers. I can't use my powers to find them. They are somehow... shielding themselves."

Cinderheart gasped. "How can they even do that? They're just a bunch of loners, right?"

"No." Echopaw thought of something he saw before. What Terra talked about the commanders not acting themselves. "I think someone else is behind their power, controlling them." He returned to the danger at hand. "We must get ready to fight. Defend our camp from these outsiders."

The warriors scattered. Lionblaze yelled to Dovewing and Darkpaw, "You two, come with me to circle outside the camp. If they are truly attacking, we should be the first to know."

Darkpaw nodded. Dovewing recovered from her blowback and shook herself off as she followed Lionblaze. "Right!"

Cinderheart ran inside the medicine den. She called to Dawnpaw. "Help me find the healing herbs, Dawnpaw."

The Guests weren't that a bother. Harlem offered to help anywhere he could. Echopaw appreciated the offer, but he gave Harlem the job of protecting the other Guests, especially the kits. The she-cat sisters agreed to take care of the kits as well.

Terra was able to drum up the courage to see if she could do anything. "Echopaw, I can try to talk to my brothers to stop. Please let me talk to them one more time. If anything goes wrong, I'll come right back."

Echopaw could understand her wishes, but... "Terra, I can't let you do that. If you meet with them, you might not come back alive. If they find out you're a friend to us, I have no idea what they'll do to you."

"Give me a chance. There are some cats I know who are nicer than the others. The ones that didn't completely understand what it meant to be a Broken Heart, like me."

He closed his eyes. After a few seconds, he spoke. "I'm sorry. No. Wait for them here. If a fight breaks out, you can try to persuade your friends in combat. If they are really caring, then they should listen."

Terra seemed both disappointed and satisfied. "Okay."

"Thanks."

As she dashed away toward the Guest den, Echopaw spotted Splashpaw and Squirrelflight near the warriors den, having an argument. Echopaw listened closer to what they were fighting about.

Splashpaw was growling. "Squirrelflight, stay here and I'll protect you."

Squirrelflight twitched her whiskers in disapproval. "I'm a full grown warrior. I don't need protection. I can fight all of those loners."

"No, you'll be taken and killed. I can't let that happen!"

"Splashpaw, don't worry. I'll be fine."

"No you won't!"

Echopaw rushed in before it got physical. "Stop Splashpaw." His eyes were steady on her. "Listen to Squirrelflight. She can handle herself."

"But you said she would die," She cried aloud.

"Not today. And she won't be taken. Believe in her. The last thing she needs is you distracting her." He turned to Squirrelflight. "You can join my team to fight. Splashpaw, you can help me too if you want."

Splashpaw was wordless. She stormed off back to the apprentices' den.

Squirrelflight sighed. "You really did break her heart."

Echopaw groaned a bit. "I didn't mean to. How about you? How are you taking the news?"

"I'm used to being told, 'you may die.' Haven't you heard all my stories? They're filled with near-death experiences, from the old forest's destruction to the battle with the Dark Forest." She smiled. "I'm a hero, just like my father. And I know if I were to ever die, I would go out fighting, just like he did."

She wasn't afraid of death? Wow. Echopaw was impressed. Well, she was the daughter of Firestar. Maybe he should have more faith as well. "That's good. I'd hate for you to feel depressed."

"And what about you?" She stepped closer. "Are you scared to die?"

Was he scared of death? Echopaw couldn't find an answer. "I don't know. Yes, maybe. What gives you the courage to be that brave?"

"StarClan." Squirrelflight smiled. "They are always watching over us, even in times where we can't communicate or feel lost, they're there. Even now, Firestar is watching us. I can just feel him cheering us on. Do you have anyone in StarClan that you think cheers for you?"

He thought back. "Yeah... Now that I think of it, Ferncloud is rooting for me."

"Ferncloud? I haven't seen her in a long time." Squirrelflight went silent for a moment. Then, she appeared happy again. "If she's cheering for you, then you have nothing to worry about."

"And all the leaders are counting on me. Pinestar, Bluestar, Crookedstar, Leopardstar, Nightstar, Tallstar... Everyone..." Echopaw realized that the responsibility shouldn't be taken negatively. It's not pressure, it's motivation. "Thanks Squirrelflight. I feel much better."

"You're welcome." She padded off to try to fetch Splashpaw from her grief.

Suddenly, the bushes at the entrance to camp rustled. The surprise jolted Echopaw as he crouched and unsheathed his claws.

"Echopaw! Echopaw!" Dovewing ran into camp.

Echopaw calmed. "What's wrong?"

"The Broken Hearts are here! They're just outside the camp! Darkpaw and Lionblaze are trying to stall them. We need to get ready!"

"How many are there?"

"At least ten, with two commanders."

Echopaw turned around and yelled. "Ariel, Gena. Protect those kits! Harlem and Terra, hold up the rear of the camp! Squirrelflight, you're with me! Cinderheart and Dawnpaw, be ready to fight if need be, but keep those healing herbs ready! Dovewing, you're patrol will fight along with me and Squirrelflight."

"Okay!"

Echopaw sprinted to the middle of the clearing and climbed up highstone. On top, he looked around the camp. Harlem and Terra were ready, Dawnpaw was in the medicine den collecting herbs while Cinderheart guarded the entrance, and Dovewing patiently and cautiously waited near the entrance of the camp. Echopaw was ready to fight once more to save the thing he loved. StoneClan.

Then, as fast as a rabbit, Lionblaze and Darkpaw came swiftly through the bushes and twisted around. Lionblaze shouted, "Here they come!"

The moments that dragged on after were unbearable. At any second, cats of all sizes and shapes, ready to kill, would burst through into camp and attack. Echopaw stared at the entrance from atop highstone, the moon's glare soon being concealed behind the clouds once more. Slowly, the moon disappeared behind the clouds, and the bushes began to rumble.

"The clans shall be destroyed by the claws of the Broken Hearts!"

The shout rang through camp as the two commanders Dovewing spoke of entered the camp with numerous cats behind them. Their eyes were dark, teeth gritted with bloodlust, and claws flexed. One of the two was a huge tom with a smug grin.

The tom spoke up. "Our anger shall be sated with your deaths! We, the Broken Hearts, shall destroy StoneClan!"

Lionblaze froze. "That voice..."

"Broken Hearts... ATTACK!"


	10. Battle of Stone and Heart

"Broken Hearts... ATTACK!"

The camp turned into a battlefield of masses of cats struggling for survival or revenge. The large group of Broken Hearts were the first to dash at the clan cats while the two commanders stood back. Cats of all sizes charged into Echopaw's team, and others broke away to fight the rest of the warriors. The battle had begun, and StoneClan was extremely outnumbered.

Echopaw started with a single tom in the charge, tall and lean. His eyes glimmered with anger and strife. The tom slashed his right claw in hope to snatched Echopaw's ear, but Echopaw quickly dodged away and retaliated with a tough bite and a toss away. The tom was out of the way for the moment, but Echopaw was knocked down again by another she-cat.

The she-cat was small, but had a solid head. The hit made him flinch a bit. The she-cat didn't stop, though. She swiped a claw at him as he got back up. Echopaw saw through the attack and slid under her, beating blows to her chest and kicking her multiple times before throwing her off. The she-cat was weakened and retreated for the minute to fight someone else.

Echopaw took the minute to see if anyone else needed help. Cinderheart was fighting off two Broken Hearts like a badger, so she was okay. Lionblaze and Dovewing worked together to face a big group of Broken Hearts, using their tag team tactics. Darkpaw and Squirrelflight fought with two she-cats that seemed more powerful than the rest, so they'd have a challenge. Gingerpaw and Crowpelt were actually fighting as well, fighting with the Guests. Harlem, Terra, and the she-cat sisters fought bravely against the odds, looking injured but strong. Echopaw decided to help them.

Harlem was defending himself against a big tom twice Echopaw's size. He was clobbering Harlem, but he took it wincing in pain. Echopaw took the chance to leap onto the tom's back and scratch at the back of his neck. It was successful, and the tom, still dumbfounded by the attack, became clumsy. Echopaw released his grip and swung around to face him front on. Echopaw let out a loud growl and ran straight into the tom, butting heads with him. The blow was hard, but ended up in Echopaw's favor. The tom stammered away, dazed and defeated.

Harlem nodded and went to help Terra.

Echopaw was happy, until he heard a shout, "Ariel! Get back!"

Gena was tussling with two toms, but Ariel was badly injured, cut across the neck. She was breathing hard and looked close to collapsing. Echopaw rushed to aid them. He started by grabbing a tom off of Gena using his claws. The first was easy to pry off, but the bigger tom was harder. It took a second, but Echopaw was able to slice the toms flank and roll him over. The tom was angered and countered immediately with a hard kick to Echopaw's chest.

The wind knocked out of him, Echopaw held his chest and looked up in time to see the tom already attacking again. Echopaw dodged, luckily, and found the spot where he could overwhelm the tom. He swiped the toms legs, knocking him off-balance. Then jumped back, feeling himself land on the side of highstone. The tom sighted him just in time to freeze at Echopaw's determinate emotion. Echopaw bounded off the rock, heeding Lionblaze's words, "You need to add your own little twist to the attack." He smiled and begun to spin slightly, smacking his claws right into the tom's shoulder. The blow was loud, and the 'crack' sounded through the camp, creating a moment of ceasefire to realized where the sound came from. Did he do that?

The tom was defeated and couldn't walk with his left front leg. It seems as though Echopaw had broke loose his shoulder bone. That'd take a long time to heal! The tom limped away.

Echopaw huffed. He actually used his technique. Amazing.

Gena flew to Ariel's side, examining her wounds. Gena helped her along to try to get into the medicine den for Dawnpaw to help her. Echopaw followed close behind as a guard, looking at the battle once more.

Lionblaze was tearing through the cats while Dovewing picked off the smaller ones. Those two were stronger than he thought. Lionblaze's power must come in handy. They didn't have many injuries, and looked ready enough to fight a pack of dogs. Across the field, Squirrelflight had separated from Darkpaw, joining up with the Guests to fight off the superior numbers. Gingerpaw and Crowpelt worked in sync at repeatedly clawing back a couple cats. Darkpaw was busy fighting those two big she-cats, who seemed a bit tired. Darkpaw, like always, was emotionless. Who knows if he's winning or losing? Then finally, Echopaw sneered at the two commanders, doing nothing but watching the carnage sitting on top of highrock. How'd they get up there anyways? Echopaw only stayed with the sisters until they safely made it to the den, then psyched himself up to face those two commanders.

They seemed so smug. What, did they not care who won or lost? Echopaw walked step by step toward highstone, being careful not to be spotted by them, but all his sneak attack plans went south when the smaller dark tom turned around and saw him. The grin he wore was pure evil... but familiar.

He nudged the taller tom and pointed at me, speaking loud enough for all to hear. "This one's mine!"

That voice... Why does that voice seem familiar? Echopaw stopped and waited as the tom came down the rock and landed with his paws in front of each other.

He smiled and looked up at Echopaw. "I should have killed you a long time ago."

Suddenly, the tom disappeared quickly and blended in with the other cats. Echopaw hesitated. What speed! How was he supposed to fight someone with that much speed? He scanned the battle around him. It was like looking for a mouse in a giant complex of tunnels. Looking for a dark cat at night time was impo-

'SLASH!' Echopaw fell back and gasped. That attack was so swift, he couldn't even see anything. He felt where he had been cut on the ear. That won't heal. He stood back up and looked around again. If he could see if the tom had a pattern to his strikes, maybe he could-

'SMACK!' Echopaw was blasted backwards with a close to bone crushing hit to the flank. Almost bone crushing. Echopaw still felt okay, but the pain was unbearable. Where was that fox-dung cat!? How could he fight something he couldn't see? He stood back up and saw a glimpse of the tom about to attack.

Then, Lionblaze took him down in a flurry of claws, rolling him away. In the tussle, Lionblaze jumped back and let the tom get back up. He yelled to Echopaw, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Something about this guy seems familiar. He's fast!" Echopaw kept trying to think back. He had met this cat once before, but he couldn't remember him looking like that.

The tom got to his feet, still grinning and blending into the crowds of cats again. Rushes of black could barely be seen, but it looked like he was slower now. Echopaw and Lionblaze just had to keep attacking til' he's worn out. That's only if-

'OOF' - that stops. Echopaw felt it hard on the cheek. It caused him to twirl around and crash into highstone. Before he could get up, Lionblaze ran into the crowd of battling cats yelling, "I see you now!"

He did see the tom. Lionblaze pile-drived on top of him. They fought with each other far away, so Echopaw could finally relax for a moment. Cinderheart was already finished with the attackers by the medicine den. Terra and Harlem were almost out of energy, but the number of Broken Hearts were dwindling fast. Dovewing, Squirrelflight, and Darkpaw were winning against the tired enemy group, and Splashpaw had finally joined in on the fight, picking off the smaller cats.

Echopaw shot his glance to the top of highstone, where the tall tom loomed over the battlefield. He saw that Echopaw was alone, and faced him. "Well, it seems my time has come." He began to strut down highstone. "You have been a thorn in my side for long enough."

It seemed to thunder all around Echopaw and the tom. Echopaw backed away from highstone. If the other tom was that powerful, what kind of strength did this one have? He stopped and crouched, ready to fight.

The tom smirked. "You really don't know who I am do you?"

The clouds cleared a bit. Shadows of the cats began to appear on the ground. Echopaw had his eyes fixed on the tom, but suddenly his attention was redirected to the tom's shadow. It had a... face? White sharp triangle eyes and a mouth with pointy teeth. What the heck was this cat? How could a shadow have a face, and such a scary face at that?

"I'll give you a hint." The tom lowered his head. "You are a special cat not to know me. You're not part of the clans, are you?"

The statement was exactly like... Oh no. "Lionblaze! Watch out!"

"Not this time loner!" The tom sped toward Echopaw, jaws open and claws unsheathed. Echopaw was helpless in his current condition, so all he could let out was a small attempt to blind him, but the tom overpowered the attack easily, pinning Echopaw to the ground. "I should have killed you when I first saw you. Of course StarClan would repeat history and bring another mouse-brain into the clans!"

Echopaw thought fast. As the tom came in for the kill bite, he did what he could to escape. Echopaw wrapped his tail around the tom's back left leg which caught him off guard. It gave Echopaw just enough time to push him away, clawing at his underside in the process. The tom stumbled a few tail-lengths back into the wall of highstone. Fleeing right now was the only thing Echopaw thought of. He wasn't ready to face this kind of foe. The crowd of cats were disappearing, so Echopaw sought protection in the medicine den, running fast.

The tom recovered and watched as Echopaw fled. "I'll kill you no matter the cost, Echopaw!" He was too dazed to chase after him, so he stayed put.

Echopaw was able to get inside the medicine den safely. Dawnpaw was treating Gena and Ariel's wounds. They looked up at Echopaw when he came in abruptly, injured badly.

Dawnpaw quickly examined the wounds. "What happened?!"

"It's... It's the commanders. They are..."

"They're what?"

"They're dark forest cats."

Dawnpaw gasped. "But how?"

Echopaw shook his head. "I don't know, but I need to get to Lionblaze as soon as possible. He needs to know."

"No." Dawnpaw tried to get him to lay down by putting a paw on his shoulder. "You need to rest for a little while."

"I need to get back out there, for StoneClan." His time of rest was over. The medicine den was only to hide him for a second to lose the big tom. Now it was time to drive away the other Broken Hearts. Ignoring Dawnpaw's pleads, Echopaw rushed back out into the battle.

Crowpelt, Gingerpaw,Terra, and Harlem were finished with the groups attacking the Guests' den, so Crowpelt and Terra stayed in the den to watch the kits while Harlem and Gingerpaw joined up with Splashpaw and Darkpaw. Dovewing and Squirrelflight were winning against three toms, which made up almost half of the remaining Broken Hearts. Cinderheart got carried away in battle and left her post at the entrance to the medicine den to chased two smaller she-cats. Lastly, Lionblaze was still dueling with the speedy tom, equally matched by the looks of it.

He may not know who the big tom was, but he was sure who the quick one was. He remembered running away from him... in the Dark Forest. "Lionblaze!" Echopaw tried to yell over the other yowls.

Lionblaze noticed him and took a second away from the dark tom to listen.

"The two commander's are Dark Forest cats! He's Darkstripe!"

Lionblaze finally figured it out as well. He returned to Darkstripe and growled. "I thought we'd seen the last of you in the final battle."

Darkstripe's malicious smile widened. "We found a way to sneak past StarClan's 'rules.' Our power is even greater using these Broken Hearts."

"How can this be possible?"

"By giving up their love and compassion, the Broken Heart's commanders gave up their souls. With that, the Dark Forest cats can rise up and take control of these cats. Heh heh heh."

"You-" Lionblaze crouched. "You wicked monster!"

Lionblaze tackled Darkstripe to the ground, scratching at his muzzle. Darkstripe was stealthy again, retreating back and zig-zagging back toward Lionblaze. He gritted his teeth, then opened them for a kill bite, but Lionblaze saw it coming and slid downward. The slide made Darkstripe trip over his leg and fall over onto his side.

Lionblaze shouted once more. "How dare you take advantage of these innocent cats!"

"Innocent? Hah. Funny." Darkstripe stood up, wiping off the blood on his chin. "These cats are everything but innocent. They would kill cats even without our power. They gave up their lives to destroy hopes and dreams." He swayed his head around and narrowed his eyes at Lionblaze. "The Broken Hearts live up to their name. Heartless killers."

"Even the most broken of cats can heal. Nothing that has happened can't be fixed." Lionblaze stepped closer.

Darkstripe tilted his head to the side. "That's where you're wrong. These cats can't heal... because we won't let them!"

Darkstripe's shadow lit up, the eyes and mouth becoming red and more jagged. It distracted Lionblaze and left him open for attack in his state of fear. Darkstripe fell onto Lionblaze, slashing at his neck.

They tumbled away as the number of Broken Hearts were almost diminished to none. Squirrelflight, Darkpaw, Splashpaw, Gingerpaw, Harlem, Dovewing, and Cinderheart were all together, fighting the hardest of them. Only 5 cats were left other than the two Dark Forest commanders, and it seemed as though the Broken Hearts were getting an advantage on StoneClan because of the commanders' strength. He needed to fight and win against the other tom.

But Echopaw was still not ready to face the other commander, but he had to. How was he to beat a full grown, and yet grown more, warrior?

"Echopaw." A whisper came to his ear. The good twin's voice.

He turned to find her, but she wasn't there. "Where are you?"

"Echopaw, be calm. We are here to help you." The she-cat's voice came from the ground, where his shadow hit the grass. "Lure his shadow into your shadow, and I will disperse the evil spirit for his body."

"Wait, what?" Lure the tom's shadow into his shadow? What did she mean?

"Just do it. I can only do this once, so make sure you can pin him down."

Pin him?! He's too huge! He couldn't argue with her though. This was his only chance to save StoneClan. He faced the tom on the top of highstone, who was looking back at him questionably.

The tom rose his head. "Who were you talking to?"

Echopaw got into his attack stance. StarClan be with me. "None of your business, mouse-dung!"

The tom, offended, snarled. "You dare say that to me! I'll put you in your place loner!" The tom bounded down the rock.

"Bring it!" Echopaw dashed at him. He felt it. The self-sacrifice feeling that Squirrelflight talked about. He didn't care if he died in battle. If he fell in battle, he'd still be granted a hero. But he can't die here. There were many more cats to meet, to befriend, to fight.

The tom opened his mouth, exposing his needlelike teeth.

The amount of duty he held on his shoulders was too much to waste on such a battle as this one. He did have the courage to defeat this cat, or what hope would he have to beat Scourge?

The tom leaped at Echopaw.

"I am a hero destined to create peace, and I won't let you get in my way." Echopaw ran faster, getting past the tom's landing point and turning around. The tom, taken by surprise, didn't land correctly and became unbalanced. This was it.

Echopaw sped at the tom. The tom looked at him with one staggering eye as Echopaw crashed onto him. He fell. Echopaw pushed hard on his side. The tom was pinned. Twins, do your thing.

"You little- *gasp*." The tom froze, watching his shadow. "What's happening?!"

Echopaw's shadow started to create glimmers of light, gathering around the tom's shadow's face. The grin it had turned to a frown, as it began to disappear.

"How is this possible?! Ack!" The tom looked back at Echopaw.

Echopaw was triumphant.

The face on the shadow was almost gone. The tom roared, "You haven't seen the last of me! I, Thistleclaw, will make sure you are ripped open, massacred, and killed!"

The sharp red eyes and mouth turned to black, and the shadow was returned to normal.

The tom shook asudden. Echopaw backed off him and stepped a few tail-lengths backwards.

The tom got up wobbly. He held his head with one paw and gazed at Echopaw. "What... What's going on? Where am I?"

"You were being controlled by a demon. You're lucky to still be alive."

He realized who Echopaw was. "You..."

"Dale!" Terra came out of the guests' den. "Is that you?"

The tom, apparently Dale, turned to Terra. "Stealthy? What's happening?

"You need to call off the attack. Cats are dying!"

Dale noticed the other Broken Hearts fighting. They were all very badly injured, along with the warriors as well. "How did this... Everyone, stop!"

The battle ceased. The Broken Hearts went to one side and the warriors went to the other, staring at Echopaw, Terra, and Dale. The fight between Lionblaze and Darkstripe continued though, looking out of place.

Dale announced, "I do not know what's going on. What is happening?"

Terra whispered to Echopaw under Dale's voice. "He's one of the cats I was talking about. He can change."

Echopaw interrupted. "You all are being lead by beasts from another realm. Your leaders are pure evil, only seeking revenge and death."

One of the Broken hearts shouted out. "That is what we want. Destruction!"

"Yeah!"

"Make others feel our pain!"

"No!" Echopaw couldn't understand how these cats could have so much hate. "You need to have compassion, you need-"

"You can't help them." Dale stepped in front of Echopaw. "We are beings of despair. I don't know what has really happened, but I will take care of it myself." He glared at him. "We take care of ourselves, and we don't need your pity."

Terra pleaded, "Don't go Dale. If you go back, you'll be controlled again or killed."

Dale was grim. "Stealthy, I'll be sure to report that you have left us."

She was silenced. She saw something in this cat? Echopaw could clearly know what she was thinking right now. Traitor.

Dale walked between the lines of warriors and Broken Hearts. "Broken Hearts, regroup. This mission is over. Too many lives would have been lost if the fighting hadn't stopped now. We must report back to the leader of our stalemate with this clan."

"StoneClan!" Echopaw proudly said. "We are StoneClan, and tell your leader that we will fight anyone he sends to kill us, no matter what power they possess."

Dale turned his head just enough to reveal his half frown, half smile to him. "StoneClan."

The Broken Heart followed their commander out of the camp, exitting one by one through the camp entrance.

Echopaw noticed that Terra had gone back to her den. He could sympathize with her. She lost a friend. If she couldn't convert one cat to good, what chance did she have at any of the others? Echopaw started toward her den, ready to-

"Echopaw, are you forgetting about something?" Dovewing asked.

Lionblaze! He was still tussling with Darkstripe. Oops. "Darkpaw, with me. We'll hold Darkstripe back."

Darkpaw ran beside him, chasing after the two. Lionblaze was hard at work, clawing Darkstripe's fur as roughly as he could, but Lionblaze was losing. His pelt soaked with bloods and covered in cuts and scars. Echopaw went one way while Darkpaw went the other. They honed in on Darkstripe, then took a hefty leap at him. Darkstripe was still focused on Lionblaze, so he didn't notice the other two until the last second. That second wasn't enough time for him to dodge, and he was taken to the ground hard.

Echopaw clawed off a piece of Darkstripe's cheek fur as a warning. "Give up, Darkstripe. Leave this body before you are killed."

Darkstripe was still, then a grin and wide eyes stared Echopaw in the face. "You still don't get it, do you? I will never die! Neither will Thistleclaw. At this moment, he's probably finding another body to control. We go beyond the rules of StarClan. If the body dies, we can possess another, then another, until you are all killed! Hahahaha!"

Darkpaw sighed. He lifted his claw.

Echopaw caught sight of what he was doing. "No, don't!"

With the single blow, Darkstripe was killed. The blood from his neck dripping onto his shadow as the red eyes and mouth silently laughed and disappeared. The tom was left motionless.

Echopaw backed away from the tom and Darkpaw. "How could you do that Darkpaw?"

Darkpaw, with darkened eyes, looked at Echopaw. "It was the will of the twins. They did not have enough energy at the moment to rid the tom of the Dark Forest spirit."

"That is not how we deal with toms like that!"

"Echopaw," Squirrelflight got closer to him, "With cats like that, we must resort to killing."

"But you said that warriors don't kill other cats in battles. It is unhonorable."

"Cats that have nothing to lose and only wish to kill... they must be taken care of. They will not retreat. This is what we had to face before, against the Dark Forest cats in the final battle."

Echopaw didn't understand. Killing cats was wrong. He looked back at the tom that appeared more innocent than ever now with his body torn up. Would he have to kill one day? No, he has to find another way.

"Lionblaze, what's wrong?" Dovewing spoke loud.

Echopaw saw that Lionblaze was getting weak, so weak, in fact, that he could barely stand and was resting his shoulder on Dovewing.

Lionblaze huffed out, "That cat took almost everything out of me."

"You're bleeding all over. How is this possible? Your powers..." Dovewing paused.

Echopaw noted what Darkstripe said. "They can get around StarClan's rules. Your powers are worthless against them."

Dovewing and Lionblaze were shocked, and so were the rest of the warriors. Dovewing made sense out of his thinking. "That's why I couldn't sense where they were. My powers don't work around them either."

"Get Lionblaze to Cinderheart and Dawnpaw, pronto." Echopaw stated.

They all nodded, then limped to the medicine den, where Dawnpaw waited.

Echopaw changed his attention to focus on Darkpaw. He was still angry that Darkpaw did what he did without permission. He had to wave it off for the time being. If he can't trust Darkpaw to say what he's going to do before he does it, what trust can Echopaw have in him? The twins. Are they helping or not?

Echopaw looked at the moon, whose light still pierced the clouds. The smell of snow was apparent, but it was not yet falling. It was only a matter of time, and it would be best if they traveled to meet the twins before that day comes. Echopaw closed his eyes. They had survived the Broken Hearts... no, the Dark Forest... for now. However, this was just the start of a deadly war.


	11. Chapter 10

StoneClan camp was at peace for the time being. The sky had finally let its load of pure snow onto the earth, falling as small flakes of white. All of the cats were relieved that it wasn't as bad of a storm as they thought it would be. The only trouble in the storm was the wind, which breezed open the den entrances and let in some of the snow. Other than that, it was safe enough for the youngest of kits to play in.

The morning was gracious enough to let some sunshine through the heavy, dense clouds continuing to pour the snow unto the land. The camp had it up to their paws, and many of the warriors and Guests were excited. For most, it was their first time seeing the pure wonder.

Especially for Echopaw. It signaled change. His plan to meet the twins was to be put in motion when everyone has healed from the battle last night. The announcement would come soon.

"Oh, Echopaw! Come join me and the others. This stuff is so cool!" Splashpaw had regained her cheery spirit. What a miracle in these times.

Echopaw smiled, but he needed to check on the others. "After I make sure everyone is still okay. Is that okay?"

Splashpaw, Reilly, and Shila were hopping around, flicking the snow off their paws into each others faces. Splashpaw was winning at not having any snow on her. "You don't know what you're missing out on!"

"I think I have a pretty good idea." Getting cold.

Luckily his pelt was thick enough to withstand snow, but wind... Brrrr... Every time there is a rush of wind, he shivers for two reasons. One, he can feel it brush against his skin between his fur. Two, it reminds him of the... third vision...

He shrugged off the thought and looked toward the medicine den as he got closer. Four cats stayed the night in the den because their wounds were so severe. Gena, Ariel, Harlem, and Lionblaze. Gena had been clawed open on her front right leg and it seemed to have gotten infected from the amount of falls she had onto the ground. Ariel was torn up from protecting Gena. Now that's what you call sisterly love. Harlem, more exhausted than injured, needed some herbs to help him breathe. He was an old cat that still had that fighting vigor in him. And Lionblaze... He was unfamiliar to pain until now. True pain, at least. Their powers were useless now. Dovewing can't use hers in the sewers, to find the twins, or to track the Broken Hearts. Lionblaze couldn't fight the Dark Forest cats without getting horribly hurt. Echopaw didn't have the famous warriors he once had anymore. They were only normal warriors now.

He slowly walked inside to see Dawnpaw and Cinderheart with Gena and Lionblaze. Ariel and Harlem must have already gone back to the Guest den. Dawnpaw was gazing at her supply of herbs, looking a bit worried.

Echopaw asked, "Anything I should be concerned about?"

It took her a moment to finally notice him. "Oh, Echopaw. Sorry." Dawnpaw shifted her attention to him. "It's nothing really. I'm sure we'll be fine. Gena's healing well, and should be able to walk in a few more minutes. The snow will be good for her leg too. Lionblaze, he's in Cinderheart's jurisdiction. I can't touch him."

Cinderheart cuddled closer to Lionblaze, both purring. "He's still my brave warrior. I'll be the only one who treats his wounds."

Lionblaze laughed. "Yeah, I blew it with Darkstripe. Who knew he could be more powerful than he was before?"

"Next time, you don't go in it alone, do you hear?" Cinderheart scolded.

"..."

"Right?"

"Okay, okay." Lionblaze couldn't help grinning. He turned to Echopaw. "I'll be fine in a few. We'll continue your training then."

"Actually, that's what I came to talk about." Echopaw sat down. "I want to leave for the twins as soon as possible."

All of them were shocked. Dawnpaw was the first to speak up. "But, so soon after an attack by the Broken Hearts?"

"They won't be coming back for a long time, so that gives us the chance."

Cinderheart argued next. "Still, that doesn't mean they won't try to attack you when you travel."

"That's why we'll be going around the Twolegplace. If what Dovewing and Darkpaw said is right, they should be in the eastern forest."

Lionblaze stared at Echopaw. "This would be risky, but what Echopaw is saying makes sense. My main question is," He narrowed his eyes, "Why are you still so determined to meet them?"

Echopaw bent his head down. "I can't resist it. I need to know... I need to know who they really are and why they are known as the Twolegplace's StarClan." His paws began to slip from underneath him. "If they really are that special, I should be able to see them with my own eyes and judge if they really are on my side."

The air in the den seemed stale. Dawnpaw looked away. "If you're really going to leave, who's going with you?"

"I'm still thinking."

"Just know whoever you leave behind, you are endangering their lives if there's another attack."

"Right. But I doubt they'll attack in this weather."

"Never doubt possibilities."

Still, who should he chose to go? Lionblaze for sure, and Darkpaw is going to lead us, but what of the others? Dovewing maybe to get them through the rest of the travel. Harlem, Ariel, Gena, Reilly, and Shila should be returned to their friends, but what about Terra, and what if they run into trouble and lose the Guests? And Squirrelflight... That's the big question. Leaving her here would be a risk, but taking her with us would be a risk too. Weighing the choices, they are practically even. Who would he choose to stay behind.

Cinderheart noticed Echopaw deep in thought. "Hey, don't worry too much on it. You already have the Poisons and Twoleg cats on your side, right? If any trouble comes around, I wouldn't be surprised if they could jump in and help."

Echopaw became less stressed. "You are right." He turned away. "But you know kittypets. They don't want to stick their noses into what they don't have to."

"Poisons?"

"Too busy fighting off their own home to have time to help us."

Her ears twitched. "I'm just trying to help you calm down. Go play with Splashpaw. Keep your youth while you still can."

The comment kinda hurt. Echopaw reluctantly obeyed her suggestion and left the den. The kits were pouncing on each other now, trying to shove snow into each others faces. Splashpaw was watching from a safe distance and laughing. Her enjoyment held as Echopaw got close enough for her to see him. The falling snow was soft, but still blurred their vision.

Splashpaw closed her eyes and looked away. "Too grown up to play with us?"

Echopaw chuckled. "Something like that. But even grown cats can't have fun once in awhile."

Her bright spirit returned instantly with a high jump and a deafening squeal. "Cool! I can show you this new game I made up. See, I draw a line down the area right here." She picked up a stick and dragged it across the part of the clearing. When she got to the thistle wall, she disposed of the stick and shouted out the rest of her instructions. "Now, we see how much snow we can get into each others territories. Me and Shila against you and Reilly. The one who has the most snow in their area loses, and has to do whatever the other team tells them to do."

"What? Don't you think that's a little drastic for a reward?" Echopaw complained.

Shila had broken away from Reilly for the moment and smiled at Echopaw. "Fraidy-cat?"

Reilly landed on top of her. "I'm not! I could beat both of you by myself! I'm a master at snow-shoveling."

"This is your first time in the snow, liar!" Shila rolled Reilly off her back.

Echopaw stepped to one side of the line where Reilly had landed. He prepared himself and stared at Splashpaw. "Ready when you are."

Splashpaw swayed her tail and grinned. "Ready. Go!"

The Broken Heart cats, injured and wounded, walked into the alleyway laden with snow. The travel was unbearable, but they had finally returned to camp. The other Broken Heart just stood and examined how much damage the clan cats had done to them. Some were astonished, and some took pity, but all of them agreed on one thing. The clan cats meant business, but they weren't going to let them beat the Broken Hearts next time.

Dale looked blankly at the ground in front of him. The heart shape on his chest glowed red the closer he got to the end of the alley. He could feel the feelings of hate pour into his body every time he approached "the master." Something about him hasn't been right in the past few moons. He's become more dark.

The last of the wounded battlers stopped behind him. Dale went closer to the end of the way, sitting at the foot of a large box of wood. On the top of the wood, the master laid down, facing the opposite direction. His head was lowered into his front paws.

Necron, we come bearing troubling news."

The tom, Necron, rose his head. "What is it?"

"Our mission was a failure. We were too evenly matched with StoneClan."

The Necron got up and faced Dale, looking down on him with empty eyes. "Who ordered the attack?"

Dale was confused. "You did sir. Don't you remember?"

"I..." He put paw to his chest. He whispered something shallowly, then returned to Dale. "They are powerful. Now all of you see that they are too strong to take on in their home territory. We will wait. We must see what they do."

"Another thing. We lost Torc. A golden tabby tom was able to kill him."

Necron's eye lit up at the words of the tom. His frown started to crack a demented smile. "Golden... Tabby... Tom?"

"Yes sir. A very valiant and persistent one. None of us could fight him off 'cept Torc." Dale saw something start to change in Necron.

"Hm hm hm. Well, I think I know the perfect person for the job."

"Sir, I have been told..." Dale drifted off.

Necron became intrigued. He sensed Dale's uncertainty. "What?"

Dale collected himself to say it. "Are we being used? Is someone else leading the Broken Hearts?"

Necron doubled back. He looked at the rest of the cats in the alley. "Leave us. Dale and I have a little bit to talk about."

The cats, one by one, left the alleyway and went onto the streets. In only moments, Necron and Dale were alone. The shallow darkness settled onto the rough ground. The scarce mice scurried away, sensing danger approaching.

His eyes lit up, a searing gaze fell onto Dale. "What kind of nonsense is this?"

"StoneClan told me-"

"StoneClan!? You'd listen to them?"

"Stealthy was there. I trust her, and she agreed with them."

"She's a traitor!" Necron stopped and repositioned himself. "You are beyond convincing, aren't you?"

Dale crouched and unsheathed his claws. "Tell me the truth!"

"You really want the truth?" He smirked.

"Who are you?" Dale growled. "Why couldn't I remember anything about the battle?"

"Who am I? I'll show you!"

A dark figure seemed to emanate from Necron. It detached itself and formed into the shape of a cat. He Necron stumbled backwards and leaned against the fence as the dark figure leaped down from the box. A wind picked up and swept the path and chilled Dale's pelt.

Dale was in shock. What was he seeing here? He staggered, stepping back toward the alley exit. "No, what are you?!"

"I am a being of loneliness, agony, and hatred. The pure essence of a broken heart. Unimaginable anger." The figure's eyes turned dark. "And you... Have worn out your usefulness." A mouth with sharp teeth revealed itself on the figure, and his paws became long claws.

Dale readied to protect himself, but the figure was just too fast for hit. It only took a second for the figure to run at him and slash Dale across the neck. Blood splattered onto the ground. He tumbled along the ground and landed on his side, gasping for air. The gash was deep enough to almost cut his whole head off.

The figure shook it's claw, then took the blood on it and traced a shape on his chest. "A true Broken Heart has no love." Halfway through, he started to make a ragged line down the middle. "You had feelings for Stealthy, which made you weak. If you really wanted to be a Broken Heart, you sever any and all connections." The shape... A broken heart.

"You- ack!" Dale flailed. His eyes were filled with fear. Stealthy was right. He did get killed. "-monster!"

"You're right, but who are you to follow a monster?"

Dale went still. His last breath was cold and joined with the sudden wind that had picked up. The breeze ended it's travel through the ominous alley and spread into the streets, it's gale filled with the breaths of the dark figure's previous victims.

"No one will ever know. Until my revenge has been enacted, my identity must remain secret."


	12. Chapter 11

"Ha! We win!"

Echopaw and Reilly were on their backs, huffing loudly as Shila and Splashpaw shoveled the last of the snow onto their side. The she-cats won.

Shila jumped onto Reilly and tumbled into the snow pile that they had put together. "I told you! I'm so much better than you!"

Reilly grabbed some snow with his paw and surprised her with a face full of it. "Whatever!"

She shook away the flakes and pounced Reilly again.

Splashpaw came over to Echopaw to help him to his feet. "Had fun?"

Echopaw was exhausted, but he did have a bit of fun. "Yeah, I guess."

"Guess? Come on Echopaw." Splashpaw jumped and twirled in the soft white snow spun with her until she landed again. "That deserves more than an 'I guess.'"

"Okay, I did have fun." Echopaw wiped the melted snow off his whiskers. "Next time, I make the game."

"And now you have to do something I tell you to do." Splashpaw smiled.

Echopaw rolled his eyes. "What?"

"Echopaw!" Dovewing called out at the entrance of the camp. His eyes were closed, using his powers. "There are cats near the eastern border. I can't quite make out their appearances in the snowfall, but I can tell there are at least two figures."

Splashpaw was upset that she was interrupted. Echopaw turned away and ran up to Dovewing, calling out, "Darkpaw, Splashpaw, come with me and Dovewing. Let's go see who these cats are and if their friendly or not."

Darkpaw came out of the apprentices' den and nodded. Splashpaw puffed her cheeks out for a second in frustration, then replied, "Coming."

They rushed out of camp in a hurry. Dovewing waited until Darkpaw and Splashpaw had come with to go out the camp entrance. When Echopaw got to the forest clearing, he found himself crashing into a stacked snow pile. The whole front half of his body was encased in snow for the second until he forced his way out. The flakes on his fun soaked through and made him shiver. So cold.

Splashpaw came up from behind and laughed. "Oh my! Watch where you're going next time! Ha ha."

Echopaw frowned at her, then continued to go eastward around the camp.

In the dazzling forest, the white flakes of snow continued to fall from the clouds of gray. Beyond the trees, the freezing breeze from the howling ocean brushed over the Thunderpaths and cliffs into the forest, while on the other side, the wind hits the face of the mountains and travels up into the sky. The faint traces of mice and birds were still littered throughout the path, but any prey was long gone by now. Echopaw's breath was visible and fell behind him as he leaped through the snow in the direction of the plains.

Thoughts were circling his head, like they always did. The trespassers didn't trouble him as much as the decision who to leave behind when he traveled to the twins. He could leave some of the guests, for they still haven't found all their homes. Crowpelt and Gingerpaw would be good to keep back as well. But he needs to leave at least one warrior behind, and Echopaw knew Cinderpelt would refuse to stay behind without Lionblaze with her. He needs Lionblaze to come with him. If he left Squirrelflight behind, it'd be easier somewhat to keep her safe, but another attack would be too much for them to fight off. Squirrelflight was the major choice to make. Would he risk her safety by taking her with, or leave her behind and risk her being taken away under their noses?

Wow. Focus Echopaw. There are intruders. Deal with this for now.

Dovewing was just behind him, shouting out the directions. "Just up ahead, in the middle of a clearing. I can't make it out, but it might just be because of the snow."

They knew the only other reason she couldn't see them. Broken Hearts...

"Get ready Darkpaw, Splashpaw. If they're Broken Hearts or any other hostile cats, we'll give them a warning. If they don't listen, then we will fight." His eyes staggered, hoping that it wasn't Darkstripe or Thistleclaw again. If it were, they would be outmatched.

As they soon began to see the beginning of the clearing, Echopaw found himself on a small ridge. He stopped before he fell off, and looked down. The river.

A frozen walkway that cut off a whole other section of the territory from them. The patrols usually went around and over small wooden bridges on the paths that were built by the Twolegs. It was much easier than finding a rock path in the water. The river itself was at least a fox-length deep and five times as long across, but now, the water was rushing beneath a shell of ice that created a semi-safe path.

Echopaw backed away a few steps. If he would have fallen from such a height, he might have broken through the ice and been trapped. He looked behind him and stared at Dovewing, "You could have told me about the river! I almost fell in!"

"Sorry! After the event with the Broken Hearts, my vision has been blurred. I can still smell the loners though, somewhere along the river-edge." Dovewing lifted her nose and flicked her ears. "Really close too. We should be able to see them..."

Splashpaw ran up in front of Echopaw. "Over there!"

Echopaw looked where Splashpaw was pointing her nose toward. Below the ridge, on the other side of the river, were two toms, tall and short, light and dark brown. Before Echopaw was able to plan their move, Splashpaw leaped off the ridge.

"I'll get'em!" She landed on the ice clumsily, slipping and falling on her stomach, but she picked herself up and continued to dash at the strangers.

"Wait! Did you hear anything I said?" Echopaw stared at her. He looked down, then chased after Splashpaw. "Everyone, just follow me."

Darkpaw and Dovewing shrugged at each other, then followed. Ahead, Splashpaw was closing in on the cats walking beside the river. The toms finally noticed Splashpaw and paused. It didn't look like they were scared, or at least the tall one wasn't frightened. The smaller one crouched and hissed when Splashpaw was close. The intimidation overwhelmed Splashpaw, and she tripped over herself and landed in the snow face-first.

"Splashpaw! Get back up!" Echopaw yelled. He was almost there.

Splashpaw lifted her head to see the small tom's gleaming eyes. She whimpered and crawled back in fear. The tom might be small, but the expression on his face was haunting.

Echopaw caught up to Splashpaw, checking to see if she was okay. "What were you thinking? Listen to me next time."

The tom caught sight of the whole group and backed up in front of the tall tom. "You can't attack us. Untouchable here!"

Untouchable? What did he mean by that? Echopaw stepped forward. "I'm sorry. My clanmate here didn't have her head. We are just here to warn you to leave our territory."

The tall tom brushed the small tom aside. The tall tom was lean and wavy, with light tan eyes and light brown fur. The noticeable attribute was the red, white, and green cloth around his neck. It looked cool. He tilted his head. "Clan? I didn't know there was a clan of cats around here."

The smaller tom, with darker brown rough fur and small ears, tried to get in front of the taller tom. "Alex, get back. These are wild cats."

Alex narrowed his eyes at him. "Clan cats, Reed. They are two different things."

Echopaw could see that Alex knew of them. "Who are you?"

Alex did some sort of quick gesture to him, then said, "I am Alex, the Italian cat, and one of the Untouchables here. Can I ask who you are?"

Alex the Italian cat? Italian? Echopaw introduced himself. "I'm Echopaw, leader of StoneClan."

"StoneClan... I've heard of the northern clans near the lake, visited there many moons back. Your clan is new." He grinned. "Nice to meet you." Alex looked to Reed and pointed him out. "This is my guard, Reed. He goes a bit over the edge most times, but he's a great friend."

Remember what you came for Echopaw. How could he tell them to get lost when they are this nice? He tried to think of a different topic to talk about.

"Oh, excuse my manners. I remember what you said. We need to leave, right? Is that why you are hesitant?" Alex rolled his eyes. "I get carried away sometimes too. I guess that's why me and Reed are friends."

"No, wait." Echopaw turned to Dovewing. "Is it okay to talk with visitors if they are friendly."

Dovewing thought. "Well, you're trying to recruit loners and kittypets, so that rule can be changed for the time being. It's up to you."

"Thanks. You guys can leave if you want. Alex, would you mind having a talk? It be very exciting to know who you are and why you have that... thing around your neck."

Reed growled. "It's a trap Alex. I know another 'clan' that tricked me into trusting them. Next thing I know, I'm imprisoned and interrogated to reveal what I know."

Alex raised an eye at him. "I've never heard of a clan that did that."

Echopaw was confused too. A clan that takes prisoners? None of the forest clans did that, to what he knew.

Alex returned to Echopaw. "I'm sorry Echopaw, you seem really nice, but I do need to get going. My friend in town is waiting for me and I don't want to worry him. Next time. Maybe when the snow has thawed."

Dovewing nodded. "Don't you need to plan out the trip to the twins anyways Echopaw? We're too busy for just a talk right now."

"I suppose so." Echopaw bowed to Alex. "I hope we meet again, but can I ask you one question before you leave."

"Yes. What is it?"

"What's an Untouchable?"

Reed grumbled. Alex smiled. "I guess you're too new to know. The Untouchables are foreign cats like me. I'm from a faraway place called Italy. There are about 5 of us around here. I even hear that two of them are from a place across the sea. Who knew that there was land beyond it?"

A land beyond the sun-drown place? Is that even possible?

"We are given the special privilege of being untouchable. No one can attack us. The other cats put that rule there because they are scared that my relatives would come after them. Either that, or they just respect us for being so nice and civilized. Or both. Anyways, no one should be able to try to hurt me."

Wow, a infinite get-away free card. "That's nice to have around here. But aren't you ever afraid that someone might ignore that rule?"

"Always. That's why I have Reed here to watch me 24/7. He barely sleeps for some reason. I don't know if he cares for me that much, or because he likes to kill cats that get too close to me."

Gulp. Reed, another one to add to the avoid list. "Thanks for telling me. If I find another Untouchable, I'll know not to attack him."

"All of us Untouchables are very friendly and would never attack anyone. Treat them nicely, and they might do something nice in return." He turned away. "Let's go Reed. Can't keep him waiting."

"Right away, Alex." After Alex disappeared into the bushes, Reed glanced at Echopaw and frowned. "I won't turn my backs on you. I'm keeping an eye on you now. No one hurts Alex." He blended into the snow and vanished into the brush behind Alex.

Something bugged Echopaw. Respect? Fear? Could these really stop any of the groups in the Twolegplace from killing Alex?


	13. Chapter 12

The sun shone through the clouds, glimmering the snowfall. The rays only got so far before the flakes reflected them back into the sky. The snow on the ground still caught the sunlight, glistening like a flattened rainbow. As trees shook slightly and the city noises were almost silenced, the warriors and apprentices found it to be the perfect time to train at the newest addition to their territory to the west.

The terrain was quite difficult to take a simple stroll through. Rocks jutted skyward, almost rising 3 fox-lengths. The snow was a bit thinner than in the forest and the sun was perfectly aligned with the center of the clearing. A brisk breeze also swept along the rocks, coming from the sea that was not very far away. Any more west would put them at the cliffs, which were labeled too dangerous for any warrior to be near on account of the risk that a cat could fall.

Echopaw took a lot of time to think the past 3 days since he met Alex. The camp had been repaired, everyone healed correctly, and all was calm. He was able to let himself trust and believe the Guests to return to their groups on their own as well. Echopaw could only hope they would not be attacked on the way back.

The decision on who to bring with him to meet the Tenkai twins had not been settled yet. The option Echopaw would love to make is to take everyone, but Crowpelt's injured legs spoke otherwise. Leaving someone here other than him and Gingerpaw would be necessary just in case they ran out of prey and needed more. Then there's Squirrelflight...

"Echopaw, watch out!"

Splashpaw's call snapped Echopaw out of it just in time to slip away from an attack by Darkpaw. His claws barely sliced Echopaw's whiskers.

Splashpaw sighed, "That was close. Come on Echopaw, get your head in the game!"

He nodded to her, then looked back at Darkpaw. Darkpaw began to climb the jutted rock and rose higher and higher until he was at the top. He looked downward at Echopaw and smiled.

Echopaw sensed what he was going to do and prepared.

Darkpaw stepped back, the lept down at Echopaw, paws widened.

Echopaw bent lower. Before Darkpaw was a tail-length above him, he slid to the side and twisted to see Darkpaw's horrible landing. Unstable, Darkpaw was open for an attack by Echopaw.

However, Darkpaw's failure of a landing turned out to look that way on purpose. His eyes gleamed at his once dazed self returned to a fierce guard, taking Echopaw's blow. Something about the way Darkpaw could take so many hits and not be knocked back confused him. It felt as though he could barely tip Darkpaw.

The moment Echopaw stopped his attacks, Darkpaw flung his whole body at him and caused Echopaw to stumble back against a wall of a rock. It seemed to be over, though Darkpaw wasn't just yet finished. He gathered his strength and crouched lower to the ground.

Echopaw saw only one way out of this situation.

Darkpaw rushed head first at Echopaw. His movements were locked on to Echopaw.

In a plight of slyness, Echopaw bent down, then jumped higher than any squirrel could. The leap was high enough that Darkpaw couldn't reach him. He found himself unable to stop and plowed into the wall.

Echopaw landed somewhat stumbling, then fell to his haunches. After all of that, he was too tired to see if Darkpaw was down.

A paw landing on his head made it final.

"Darkpaw won this match." Dovewing snickered, "Echopaw, that's 0 of 5 now. What? Is Darkpaw too strong for you?"

"YES!" Echopaw lifted himself after Darkpaw's paw retreated back. "He's a commander of the twins. I'm an apprentice while he's probably had years of training."

"Still, that's no excuse. It doesn't matter how powerful the opponent is. You need to beat them with whatever possible tactic you have." Dovewing's tail flicked side to side. She rose her head. "For example, Darkpaw has an amazing amount of perseverance. Constantly pounding on him won't do anything, and making him crash into a wall would do minimum damage at best. Tiring him out won't work either. So what kind of moves and strategies could you use against him?"

That was something to think about over a long period of time. How was he supposed to know that in an instant?

While Darkpaw and him were sparring, in the far distance, Harlem was sitting alongside Lionblaze, surveying the fight. He, unlike the other Guests, decided to stay behind. Echopaw could appreciate Harlem staying behind, but something felt strange. It sounded as though he wasn't planning on joining StoneClan, so is the only reason for him staying here just to learn about them?

Harlem's eyes were steady. He looked to Lionblaze every so often to ask a question, like many of the ones he's had before. "So you train for what reason exactly? To fight?"

Lionblaze chuckled. "Well, that's one way to look at it. We train to become warriors. Warriors are the cats who take care of a clan by hunting and fighting off other animals or cats. Fighting is used as self-defense for clans, and of course we try to avoid it at all costs." He glanced back at the forest in the direction of the twolegplace. "However, in StoneClan's case, we're training to defeat BloodClan."

Harlem was shocked. "Wait, so that's the only reason you are here?"

"Pretty much. The plan is to gather cats to join StoneClan and train them in the ways of the warrior code, which I still think will be almost impossible." He tilted his head. "Though, Echopaw and StarClan have more faith in the plan than I do. For some reason, they think it'll work."

"StarClan... The clan that you were talking about before. Where all clan cats go after they die, right? They can still speak to you?"

"Yes. It's amazing to think about it. Well, for you, it probably sounds like a mouse-brained fantasy."

"No, no. I find it fascinating Lionblaze. The only question that I have now is why you're challenging the Broken Hearts." Harlem got closer. "I've heard that one of you killed Zon."

"Zon threatened to kill our friend for no reason at all. Cats like them are evil." Lionblaze shifted his focus back to Echopaw. "Evil is evil. No matter how you look at it. Warriors live to protect life in the Clans, but never stop to think when a good cat is in trouble. We save them."

"You're just getting into more trouble with the Broken Hearts. If everything you say is true about you fighting to protect good cats, you'll be up against more than you can handle. BloodClan especially. They may not be the largest group in the upwalkerplace, but they sure are the strongest." He narrowed his eyes. "Just hope that they don't all attack you at once, or you'll all be dead."

Lionblaze couldn't hide his distress. "We all know the risk, and we are ready to face any odds to stop BloodClan."

Echopaw felt a bit guilty. All his friends will be fighting by his side, and they might die.

Darkpaw came at Echopaw, zigzagging across the rock tops. His voice went through Echopaw's head. "Pay attention Echopaw. Stop thinking and act. You already know how to beat me. You're not focusing on me, and that's why you keep failing."

Echopaw snapped out of it and saw Darkpaw charging down the rock toward him. Yes, he needs to focus. Echopaw turned to face Darkpaw. Focus... wait... focus? Something about that sounded interesting. Focus... all my power into a single point. Attack where the pain won't go away too quickly.

Darkpaw leaped and put his paws forward.

That's it. Echopaw held his ground, envisioning the attack before it came. After the second, he thrusted himself upwards with a lot of force. A single paw in front, he struck Darkpaw in the middle of his chest.

Darkpaw's weight was too much for him as they both fell to the ground. Echopaw rolled over a few stones and into a pile of snow. Darkpaw fell onto his side and laid still.

Dovewing and Splashpaw were in awe. Splashpaw dashed to Echopaw, as Dovewing ran to Darkpaw.

Echopaw coughed out some melted snow and smiled. "I'm okay." He tried not to move much. "Hey, I did it. That's all that matters."

Splashpaw grumbled. "You could have gotten a broken bone, or cut yourself! This is training, not a real fight."

"Darkpaw's okay!" Dovewing shouted from across the clearing. "He hit a couple sharp rocks and got some cuts, but he's okay."

"See?" Splashpaw scolded. "Take it easy next time."

"It's Darkpaw. He'll be fine. He's one of the twins commanders. I'm sure he can survive a few cuts."

"Hmph." Splashpaw strutted away to catch up with Dovewing and Darkpaw, who were heading back to camp. They disappeared into the white forest.

Echopaw recovered from the shock of the fall and saw Harlem and Lionblaze heading toward him. Harlem laughed, "Nice one. Never seen a squirt like you take on a cat both bigger and heavier than him. Now I know what happens. Ha."

Lionblaze grinned. "Anything to take out a cat like that. He's pretty strong for you Echopaw. Even injuring him is an accomplishment."

"Thanks." Echopaw shook the snow off his pelt. "During all of that, I was able to decide who's going to come with us to see the twins."

"Was that why you kept getting pinned? Echopaw, you need to focus more."

Echopaw smiled. "Trust me. I did plenty of focusing."


	14. Chapter 13

"All gather under highstone for a clan meeting."

Echopaw's voice was audible through the entire forest. The cats that were just outside of camp enjoying the snow came back into camp, talking with each other on the way. Others, including Dawnpaw, took a bit longer to appear in the clearing. Her mind was on something else, but all the others were worried about Echopaw's choice. Crowpelt and Gingerpaw were the most afraid. They knew they were going to stay behind.

Lionblaze climbed up the rock and sat next to Echopaw. He whispered, "I talked with Terra. She seems to have taken a liking to us."

Terra hadn't left with the other guests either. Echopaw was glad that she stayed. Her bravery to face the Broken Hearts again was commendable. Terra had become more outgoing, trying to play and talk with Splashpaw a day at a time.

Squirrelflight and Splashpaw came out of the warriors den slowly. Splashpaw hung her head low, knowing that her teacher's safety was going to be in risk with whatever decision Echopaw made. Squirrelflight didn't seem as worried. She was more excited. Maybe she had finally accepted that it was just a vision and won't come true if they take precautions.

Echopaw turned to see that everyone else had arrived. Harlem, Dovewing, Darkpaw, Gingerpaw, Crowpelt, Cinderpaw, Dawnpaw, Terra, Lionblaze, Squirrelflight, and Splashpaw. A small but powerful group of warriors, apprentices, and soon-to-be clan cats. Echopaw hoped that this group will grow to over three times it's size in the coming moons. StoneClan will become strong.

"The time has come when we travel to the eastern forest. The main objective, find the Tenkai Twins. I must talk to them and see if they truly are trying to help us achieve our goal in defeating BloodClan." Echopaw stood up. "I have chosen who will join me on the journey. The rest will stay here and look after the camp."

Everyone held their breaths. Splashpaw was especially tense.

"Darkpaw."

...

Silence ensued. They were waiting for more names.

Echopaw tried to break the silence. "I know most of you thought this would be a journey for all of us to make, but this is my mission. If anything happened to us on the way, I would not want to be responsible for any deaths."

"Echopaw." Lionblaze came closer to him with wide eyes. "Are you sure about this? You should have talked with me earlier."

"No, my choice will not change. This is my quest." He returned to the crowd. They were speaking to each other about the choice. "The rest of you will stay here. Protect the camp. Live the clan life and train more. The Broken Hearts will return, and with a larger group than the last."

Darkpaw stepped forward and stared. "I will be honored to aid you Echopaw. You have made a selfless choice, and I applaud you."

"Thank you, Darkpaw, for being willing to take me to the twins."

The clouds in the sky cleared to show the shining sky. The snow stopped falling for the minute. Everyone was still stupefied. They split into the usual groups of cats to return to their daily schedule.

Echopaw turned around and glanced at Lionblaze. "I will leave as soon as the snow begins to fall again."

"Echopa-"

"It's my choice."

Lionblaze stood still, only able to watch as Echopaw walked down highstone. He was silent.

Darkpaw centered his eyes to Lionblaze, "I will protect him with my life."

Lionblaze heard Darkpaw and faced him.

"May my life be gone before I let Echopaw die."

Lionblaze nodded. "I trust him to you then. Please. He is StoneClan's only hope."

Echopaw perked his ears up. So much pressure... But he was okay with it now. "Darkpaw, be ready to leave very soon."

"Wait, Echopaw!" Dawnpaw rushed out of the medicine den. "I have some things for you. Hold up!"

He stopped walking. "Dawnpaw, what's up?"

Her eyes were watering. "Please don't go alone. You might get killed! I'll go with you!"

"No Dawnpaw. You helped me enough. Now support the clan."

"I can't just let you go!" Dawnpaw rubbed her muzzle against his cheek. "Stay here. Why do you need to see these cats?"

He sighed. "I've already told you many times. Do I need to explain it again?"

She pressed harder. "I just... care about you. You are StoneClan's leader. Without you, we'd be prey for those unmerciful loners and Broken Hearts."

"I know. But stop worrying." Echopaw backed away, sensing Darkpaw behind him. "If I was in trouble, the twins would warn me, remember? And if the first three visions I received are in order, then I still have a second vision before I worry about the final one."

"Echopaw!" She shouted. "Your life isn't revolving around the twins! Your life isn't set in stone! You live your own life. You can't know when you're going to die."

He turned around to face Darkpaw, silent as mouse. Darkpaw glared at him. "Listen to her. She speaks the truth. Especially if you think you'll always get visions. Their power is not forever. They may see potential in you, but will not set aside the thought of letting you die. Especially the dark twin."

Echopaw paused, lowered his head, then spoke. "Thank you Dawnpaw, for showing how much you care." A tear escaped his eye. "I'll be careful."

Dawnpaw couldn't look at him anymore. She rushed away, returning to the medicine den. Cinderheart came out as she came in, carrying a large, bulging leaf.

Cinderheart walked toward Echopaw. "Please, take these with you to heal any wounds you may suffer from." The leaf hit the ground and exposed it's contents. "The green one will help with cuts. Chew it up and spread it across. The yellow one will help you travel farther. The spiked leaf will heal any sickness you may get, unless it is unique. StarClan forbid you catch whitecough."

"Thank you Cinderheart." He picked the leaf carrier up with his mouth and threw it across his back. "Please, take care of Dawnpaw. She's very worried about me."

"We're all worried about you. This seems like a rash decision for you to make."

"I understand how all of you feel, but my mind is still boggled. If you could only sympathize with half the amount of curiosity and confusion I have."

She rolled her eyes. "Right... Don't count any of us out on that! You have no idea what we had to go through in ThunderClan." She growled. "Don't think you are any more special than the clan itself. All of us have had our share of troubles. Maybe when you get back, you'll realize that." Her exit was as fast as her entry. Cinderheart went back into the den to soothe Dawnpaw.

Echopaw faced the camp entrance. This was it. The moment he's been waiting for many weeks. He will meet the twins. Alongside Darkpaw, his journey will be more than just across the twolegplace, but through his own mind. He will face many enemies, from the loners to his own conscious.

Darkpaw tilted his head. "Shall we be on our way then?"

Echopaw nodded. "Let's go."

The dark figure slowed his pace. "Oh maliceful one, where are you?"

The moon had risen, full and shining. On the edge of the twolegplace, where the hard ground met the soft grass covered with inches of snow, the figure walked toward the grove of trees that spilled out into the ravine. In this hollow, darkness was thriving. No light could reach the floor of the thick greenery. The stream of water turns green with poison from the sewers, toxic to any cat that drank it. It seemed as though nothing could bear such uninhabitable conditions. The dark tom knew different.

"It's me. I need your assistance once more." The tom smirked. "This time, I believe you'll love the reward."

Nothing could be heard, seen, or smelt. The hollow could make the biggest of creatures disappear. The sky streaked above, very small traces of light landing on the tom's pelt.

The tom perked his ears up. "Is that you, oh devious one?"

Nothing moved.

He cranked his head closer to a nearby bush. "Where are you, oh trea- ACK!"

Suddenly, a claw came out of the bush, gripping the tom by the neck. The tom struggled to catch his breath as the entire newcomer came out. His pelt was a lean, starless sky black. The claw he held the other tom with was thorn-sharp, ready to cut into the skin at a twitch. Amber eyes glowered the tom.

The newcomer growled deeply. "I told you what I would do to you the next time you came here."

"Let go of me you-" In an instant, the tom shuddered and the blood-heart on his chest glowed. His eyes turned a dark black as he grabbed the newcomers paw. "I remember clearly." He twisted his body and knocked the other tom away, freeing himself. The tom charged at him again, but this time, he slid to the side and jumped back.

The newcomer tom circled around and yelled, "Escape while you still can! Or I will be forced to kill you where you stand."

"I'd like to see that, but we can discuss that later. Right now, I have a proposition for you." The dark tom smirked.

"Leader of the Broken Hearts. Necron, right? Isn't that what you're calling yourself nowadays?" The tom settled down. "You already owe me a debt from the last favor I gave you. What makes you think I'll do another one for you?"

The dark tom, Necron, streaked a paw across the mud. "This job is my payment to you."

The tom frowned. "You are out of your mind."

"Lionblaze..." Necron's smile grew wider by the second.

He froze. The air became thick. "Why do you speak that name in front of me? Do you wish for your death?"

"He is here..." Necron skipped toward the tom. "I need your help to kill him."

"HE IS MINE!" The tom rushed to Necron and stared eye to eye with him. "I don't need your help. I'll kill him alone."

"Oh, but you do. Last I heard, you lost the battle you had with him before. It was because of that power he had in fighting, if I remember correctly, that made you lose."

The tom gritted his teeth and was on edge. "That fox-dung cat never deserved those powers."

"With my help, you could have the fair fight you wanted." Necron slipped beside the tom and whispered into his ear. "I know how to make him powerless."

The tom could only stare ahead. His eyes were shaking. "How?" He turned and looked into Necron's black eyes. "I know you from somewhere. You're not who you say you are."

"I'd think you'd already figured out who I am. We share the same pain. Abandoned by our friends. Loved ones taken away from us." He swung his head with every step. "Except yours is even more heartbreaking." Necron's teeth reflected the moonlight onto the tom. "Lionblaze stole your father away from you. His love was the only thing you sought, and Lionblaze ruined it."

The tom began to claw at the ground. "He must pay."

Necron yowled. "He must die!"

"He must feel pain!"

"He will die!"

The tom laughed. "I am yours to command, Necron."

"The age of Broken Hearts will soon be replaced with the rise of the Dark Forest. The cats of the twolegplace will quake with fear as we crush the hopes and dreams of all. We shall pave our way to the forest clans and make them pay for the pain they made us go though, oh maliceful one." Necron sneered. "Or should I say... Breezepelt."


	15. Author's Note

Hello everyone!

So due to someone telling me to post a little information about what's going on, I'll explain why I'm not continuously posting Warriors: Light and Dark on FanFiction. Thank you for showing me your interest in the story enough to send me a note telling me to elaborate on what is going on. First of all... Don't worry. I am not suffering from writer's block. I am not having real life problems. Heck, to tell you the truth, life's going great right now and I'm dishing out chapters like crazy.

The fact is... I don't post to FanFiction! Literally, I joined this site a few months ago and shared my stories with a new audience. The only reason why I don't do it weekly is because it takes time, and formatting, and blah blah blah that gets somewhat annoying when I can just post it as it is onto DeviantArt.

That's right! I am on DeviantArt! Look me up! Jade-of-the-Stones! Warriors: Dusk/Light and Dark/Full Moon! Warriors: Destiny! Any and all of these keywords will almost directly point you to my page there. (It's a drag FanFiction doesn't support URLs.) All of my newest chapters are there, including full documents of the entire books! I've nearly finished the third book there!

I'll try to post my books here, but in truth, I have all my recent stories on DeviantArt already. If you don't want to wait forever, go look me up and enjoy the newest chapters in the Warriors: Destiny arc. Until next time, thank you all for taking such interest in my little story, and I'll likely post the next chapter soon.


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